Rangers: 25 RR
by DJ Hart
Summary: 25 years ago, A force of alien Monsters Descended upon our world Reigning Destruction, Fear and Eventually conquering the planet. Their leader, a woman called Rita Repulsa, began to rebuild the world into her own personal utopia and in all those years, she has ruled the world without challenge or opposition... Until now. This is Earth and the year is 25 RR (2018 AD)
1. The world we live in

Rangers: 25 R.R.

25 years ago, A force of alien Monsters Descended upon our world Reigning Destruction, Fear and Eventually conquering the planet. Their leader, a woman called Rita Repulsa, began to rebuild the world into her own personal utopia and in all those years, she has ruled the world without challenge or opposition... Until now. This is Earth and the year is 25 RR (2018 AD)

Episode 1: The World we live in

It was a typical day in the small town of Angel Grove, Joseph had woken up late for school as usual. On the television, the R.B.N (Repulsa Broadcast Network) was airing a documentary about Rita's revival from 10,000 years of unjust imprisonment and rather than seek revenge on those who imprisoned her, she chose to come to our world and save us from destroying our selves. He'd seen this documentary before, they had shown it in school every week since he was in kindergarten. Joseph was alone in his home; his father worked the night shift at the angel grove quarry and his mother also worked nights as a nurse at Angel Grove Hospital. Going first to the mirror of his bathroom, he beheld a boy of seventeen with blonde clean-cut hair and a light, clear completion. Joseph had a conservative nature, never speaking out of anger or frustration and always considering the people around him before he acted or spoke. Having quickly dressed in his typical long sleeves button up with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a pair of jeans, he grabbed a granola bar from the kitchen on his way out the door as he began the five-mile hike to Angel Grove High school. He was met about half way by one of his best friends; sporting tight cut curly hair and always seen wearing his favorite jean jacket, Shelton was a bit of Smart Ass, Making Sarcastic remarks every chance he got. He'd never say anything to hurt anyone, he just appreciated the occasional clever remark. Short in stature with a dark complexion, Shelton was always the life of any social gathering but his sense of humor and out spoken personality was something of a danger as the putty patrollers needed little excuse to cart anyone away to the Finster Correctional Education Facilities.

The putty patrollers were the worlds primary police force, they could be found on nearly every block in every city in the world. No one knows exactly what they are, only that they are some kind of aliens that didn't appear capable of speech, they seem to just mumble to each other. Many people seem to believe that the putties are made from dirt and clay because of their gray, lumpy skin and tendency to leave muddy foot prints in their wake. Though the putties were something to be cautious of, they were a common site and most knew to be wary when in their presence. Finster however, was another matter entirely. Serving as Rita's head of Science, Research & development, education and Corection, he is known mostly for his correctional education facilities. Used as both a temporary jail and a long-term prison, the primary function of these facilities were what most referred to as brainwashing.

People are sent there for everything from a minor traffic violation to speaking out against the Rita Repulsa Regime, though this was a rare occurrence. Most who are sent to these facilities are there for at least a month, if not years, and when they are released, they seem to be completely different people. Everything from there speech patterns to the way they carry themselves in public is changed but most notably, everyone who goes in, comes back swearing to have seen the error of their ways and claims to believe whole heartedly in Rita Repulsa and her vision for the future.

Joseph and Shelton kept their heads down to avoid staring at the puttie patrollers as they walked by. Another mile up the road, they were joined by Jennifer, another of Joseph's best friends. Jennifer was Quieter than the others, usually only speaking when spoken to. She wore her sandy brown hair in a pony tail that reached just above the small of her back and sported rectangular framed glasses above her nose. She was typically seen with a book in her hands, a sweater over her shoulders and usually sitting in the corner of what-ever room she was in. despite her quiet nature, she was known for being very bright, always scoring in the top five percent of the class. This sometimes-brought unwelcome remarks however, remarks from the school principle about one day taking her place in the science or R & D sectors. Maybe even working side by side with Finster himself, these comments made Jennifer feel very uncomfortable.

Finally arriving at Angel Grove High, the three were stopped by a hi-pitched voice calling to them from across the school lawn. It didn't take long for them to recognize the figure running towards them as Spike, the group klutz and the most socially awkward person they knew. Though he was harmless, he always attempted to portray some sort of bad boy persona, usually sporting a leather jacket and excessive chains hanging from his torn jeans. He also had what some might call an unhealthy obsession with the Arena, a place of gladiatorial combat instituted by Scorpina, Rita's head of Public affairs. Spikes greatest ambition was to one day compete in the arena and stand victorious as Grand champion; the title held by whomever wins every fight they compete in for the entire one-year duration of the contest. Because of his clumsy and down-right goofy demeanor however, no one took him seriously. He was a loyal friend though and trust-worthy, the others were always happy to have him in their company.

The four walked into the school building together, checking their back packs at the front entrance so the Security putties could inspect for contraband, this was a daily routine. Once their packs were cleared, they made their way down the hall to their lockers, in every corner of every hallway was a T.V. monitor airing the latest Repulsa Administration propaganda. This time it was showing clips from a past world war, soldiers lying dead on the ground, tanks blasting away at troops hiding behind shrubbery. It was all meant to show what life was like before Rita arrived on earth and then to show what life was like with her as ruler of the planet, the video showed children playing in the park, every day people smiling as they grocery shopped and even a shot of a dog and cat sleeping next to each other. If they were being honest with themselves, no one in school really knew what life was like back then, Rita had been in control of the planet since before they were born and none of their parents or anyone else from the time every really talked about it. After exchanging books and folders between their packs and lockers, the four friends walked to class and made it there just in time to be joined by Rachele, the last member of their close-knit group.

Most of the kids in school would refer to Rachele as "The Pretty one" or "The Hot one" when trying to point her out in the group of five. She usually dressed in a skirt that stopped just above the knees and a sleeveless blouse with three buttons at the neck, her hair was cut short above the neck with blonde highlights through-out her naturally dark brown follicles. Although it was an easy mistake to make, she didn't have a typical pretty girl attitude, quit the opposite in fact. She was very kind, caring and compassionate, always the first to lend a hand to someone in need and never turning her back on anyone in need of a friend. Unfortunately, her knack for caring could only go so far, the school only offered basic instruction in math, writing and centered heavily around the twenty-five-year history of Rita's reign on earth. The final exam out of high school was a placement test to determine where in the work force they would be assigned. Because of this, there were no after school volunteer programs or any other opportunities for Rachele to reach out and do much of anything for her community.

They all sat down just as the final bell rang and it was time for the morning pledge of loyalty to the Repulsa flag hanging in the class room. All the students in the class room placed their right hand over their eyes and recited the pledge.

"I pledge my assets, my Loyalty and my life to she, who saved us from our own self destruction and shown us the true path to peace, safety and security. And should it become necessary, I will gladly lay down my life in service of my Empress, Rita Repulsa.

No one of course, took this pledge seriously, it was just something they had to do at the start of every day. They began class afterword with basic math, nothing too complicated, just a rehash of lessons they'd already had. After that would be reading, writing and literature; of course, the literature was limited to "Rita: An Emprise to be" and "The moon and what it Taught me". There were more titles but they were mostly the same story over and over again, told from different points of view and taking place at a different point in time. These two classes took up the first third of the school day, the last two thirds were taken up with history. More specifically, the twenty-five-year history of the reign of Rita Repulsa and the tragic history of humanity before she arrived. After hearing the same lecture over and over again since your very first day of school, it tends to become pretty boring and Joseph and his friends couldn't help but wonder if there was more to it. After all, twenty-five years isn't that long a time and surely some one remembers what life was like back then. No one talked about it though, not their teachers or parents, most of whom would have been in high school themselves the day Rita arrived on earth. Yet, they never discussed it with the younger generation and while it wasn't the first question on their minds when they woke in the morning, the teens couldn't help but wonder... Why?

School would end with all of the students having been given an assignment to write an essay on what they thought their lives would have been like during the time before Rita came to save us and what about society today would have made that life better. Having already been to their lockers and checked their packs at the front entrance to ensure they weren't stealing from the school grounds, the five teens started the walk back home, talking amongst themselves about an up-coming bon fire they planned to attend outside of town. The event had been put together by various students at school and everyone who had been invited was responsible for bringing something, Joseph was bringing the drinks, Shelton the snacks, Jennifer the stereo and Rachele was one of many whose job it was to bring folding chairs. Spike… wasn't directly invited as he was some-what of an outcast out-side of his immediate circle of friends but the others encouraged him to come along any way and to just bring what he could, should anyone say anything, they'd stand by him. As the five split off to their respective homes, they agreed to meet up around five o'clock the following day (Saturday) in front of Spikes apartment building as he lived closest to the last convenient store on the way out of town.

Joseph returned home just in time to greet his father in the kitchen brewing a pot of coffee, he'd just woken up from sleeping all day and was preparing for another all-night shift at the quarry. His mother had already left for the hospital, having been called into work early, this was typical of his mother's work schedule. As Joseph made his way to refrigerator to grab some leftovers for his dinner, his father asked how school was that day, to which he responded by saying

"it was fine, boring as always."

His father snickered and replied "Don't worry son, it wasn't exactly my favorite part of childhood either, as a matter of fact…" his father suddenly stopped, as though he were about to say something wrong.

"Dad, you ok?" asked Joseph, confused.

His father shook his head and replied, "I'm fine son, nothing to worry about." And he returned his attention to his coffee.

"Oh, ok pop." Joseph said, still puzzled "as long as you're alright, how was work last night? You mentioned the other day that you received a huge order…?" the two continued to chat until it was time for Joseph's dad to head out to work for the night, Joseph took his dinner to his room and flipped on the tv for some background noise as he began working on the essay he'd been assigned in school that day.

Joseph awoke the next morning to the sound of his mother returning home from a long night at the hospital. Knowing his mother well, he got out of bed to go to the kitchen just in time to catch her trying to fire up the stove to make him breakfast.

"Mom…" he said smiling. "you should get some sleep, I can feed myself"

his mother smirked at him and replied "oh, really? What setting do you cook eggs on? Medium or high?"

Knowing this was a trick question but still not knowing the right answer, Joseph said "Medium?"

his mother chuckled and said "sit down boy, I'll sleep once I've made sure you've had more than a Granola bar for breakfast."

Recognizing defeat, Joseph sat down at the kitchen table and before long, his eggs were ready. Though he felt guilty about his mother cooking for him after a long night at the hospital, he was always happy to eat her eggs. They were always fluffy and had the ketchup cook right in with them. He gave his mother a kiss on the cheek as she headed off to bed and he began cleaning up the kitchen, this was the first of many chores he performed through-out the day when he wasn't at school. Since both his parents worked nights and slept during the day, it fell to him to keep up the house. Mowing the grass, house cleaning, swapping blown out light bulbs for new ones, he took care of everything. He didn't mind, it kept him busy and stayed off the boredom that usually fell on other kids his age, Angel Grove wasn't a bad little town but there was absolutely nothing to do. No organized sports, no community or rec centers, their town didn't even have an arena. Not that Joseph was into fighting the way Spike was but at least it would have been something to do other than watch the RBN on tv all day. So, the kids in town would find ways to make their own fun, like the bonfire that night.

By the time Joseph had finished with his chores, it was nearing four O'clock. He grabbed his Jacket, wallet & keys and headed out the door to begin the walk to Spikes apartment building. the route was similar to his walk to school every day except that instead of making the final right toward the school, he would turn left toward the town line. Just as he would on his way to school, he was met on the road by Shelton and Jennifer, with Rachele meeting them at the final fork in the road. The four reached Spikes building to find that he was not yet outside waiting for them, knowing which window was his, Shelton gathered some pebbles from the parking lot and began tossing them in hope of getting Spikes attention. Someone did come to the window but it wasn't Spike, it was his father. At first the teens froze, unsure of what to do, they had just been caught pelting this man's window with rocks after all. Before anyone could say anything the, Spike's father smiled and yelled down to them

"SPIKE'LL BE DOWN IN JUST A MINUTE KIDS, HE'S TRYING TO DECIDE WHICH CHAINS HE WANTS TO WARE"

All of the teens smiled back at him as Rachele yelled in response "THANKS MR. SKULLOVITCH, SORRY ABOUT YOUR WINDOW."

Mr. Skullovitch waved his hand and shouted back "NO WORRIES, I DID FAR WORSE WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE. DON'T BURN DOWN THE TOWN TONIGHT, OKAY."

Joseph Replied "NO PROBLEM, HAVE A GOOD NIGHT." Mr. Skullovitch waved and disappeared behind the window curtains. Spikes dad was a maintenance man in the building, it didn't pay much but his employment there got him a discount on one of the smaller apartments, just big enough for two people. Spike's mom had walked out on them when spike was very young, he didn't talk about it much but it went with-out saying that he felt he was to blame. Spike finally emerged from the front entrance of the building and the five teens headed to the convenient store to pick up the things they needed for the evening's festivities.

Having picked up the things they needed from the store, Drinks, Snack food, Jennifer already had her stereo as well as some cassette tapes she found in the basement of her house with music on them that beat anything the RBN played on the Radio, Rachele was wheeling all the folding chairs she could strap to a two-wheel dolly and Spike… Bought packs and packs of bubble gum.

"Everyone loves gum." He had said as he paid for it at the store.

They were almost to the site of the bonfire, it could already be seen glowing in the distance. The site wasn't too far out of town and near the top of a hill where some old building had been torn down and fenced off years before any of them were born. At one time, you could find more putty patrollers guarding this fence than anywhere else in town but in the last 5 years or so, they'd seemed to have lost interest in whatever was here in the first place. The teens reached the Bonfire site and were greeted by many of their fellow students, who were both thirsty and had the munchies. Joseph & Shelton passed out the drinks & snacks while Rachele set out the chairs she had brought and Jennifer fired up her stereo but when Spike tried to pass out his gum he was greeted with looks of disgust and disapproval. Feeling like an outcast yet again, Spike turned to leave but Joseph placed his arm around Spikes shoulder and told him just to forget about them, more gum for him and his friends. Recognizing that Joseph was trying to cheer him up, Spike smiled and they all took seats by the fire.

The teens sat and chatted with their school mates for hours, covering every topic from whom they had a crush on, to the results of the last arena match on tv. Eventually, the drinks & snacks ran out and the last of the fire wood was down to its last embers. Everyone began to pack up what they had brought, preparing to head home for the evening when Spike called everyone… "Hey, were we expecting more people to show up?" everyone looked at one another, shaking their heads to indicate no. "Oh, then I think we're in trouble…"

Spike pointed down to the road going back into town to reveal a mix of police, fire fighter and Putty Patrol vehicles turning off the main road and heading there way. Every one panicked, most made a mad dash for the opposite side of the hill, intending to run home the long way around while others desperately tried to gather their belongings.

"I don't get it!" Spike said in a panicky high-pitched voice, "I thought this was cool, what's the problem?"

Shelton pointed at the near-by fence and replied "That's the problem! We're too close to the fence, No one is supposed to be here. Even the cops have to get permission from the Putty patrol before they can come anywhere near here."

Everyone looked around and wondered, who's idea it was to have the bonfire here in the first place. Suddenly realizing that they were wasting time and having no desire to visit and Finster Facility, Jennifer stepped forward and said…

"Might I suggest we think about that later and Get out of here before we get caught…" She was right, the teens took another look over the hill side to see that the investigating force had parked their vehicles and were beginning to scale the hill on foot.

With-out thinking, Shelton pulled back on a part of the fence with a split in it and called for his friends to follow him through and again, without thinking, they all rushed through the fence making their way to the hill top. After reach the spot where the old building used to be, Rachele suddenly stopped and asked

"Wait, why did we come up here?"

looking confused, Shelton responded "To hide, Why else?"

Rachele looked at him in disbelief and said in reply "okay but don't you think it would have been a better idea to run down the other side of the hill like everyone else? They might come up here just to check things out."

Everyone knew she had made a valid point but it was already too late, they could hear voices coming from where the bonfire had been and they were getting closer. The teens all rushed to hide in the back-left corner of the ruins where there was still a wall partially intact and what looked like an old control panel, full of buttons and switches. As they peered from around the corner of the wall, the teens saw several figured come into view, Putty patrollers. The putties had an odd way of moving around, slightly crouched with their feet spread widely apart and their elbows always raised and bent, their stance resembled that of an ape. They may have looked goofy but they were not to be taken lightly, in addition to the rumors that they could appear and disappear in an instant, Spike had seen them in the warmup matches of the arena and it took a skilled fighter just a handful of them down. After looking around for just a moment, it appeared that they were going to leave but then, one of them turned towards the corner where the teens were hiding and began moving slowly in their direction. Terrified, the five friends huddled together, they were trapped in this corner and on the verge of being caught. They all closed their eyes and prayed, knowing this was completely in vain, except Joseph… He moved away from the group and began clearing debris from the floor in the corner. "Okay, dude." Shelton whispered "do you really think now is the best time to tidy up…?"

Joseph continued to clear away debris, revealing a handle fastened to the floor. He pulled on the handle, opening a trap door in the floor. "Guys, come on" he motioned for his friends to climb down the hole, which they did one at a time until it was Spikes turn.

"I don't know, it's dark down there and we don't know…"

Joseph cut him off "Would you rather take your chances with them?" as he pointed to the edge of the wall.

Spike nodded in agreement and lowered himself into the hole. Joseph followed closely behind and closed the trap door above him just in time to prevent the putty patroller from seeing them.

The group had climbed down a latter at least twenty-five feet down and found themselves in a dark tunnel. Unable to see their surroundings, the only thing that was visible was a dim light in the distance and having very little choice, they began to walk towards it. Taking short, shallow steps to avoid tripping in the dark, they slowly moved toward the light which grew slightly brighter as they grew closer.

"What do you think this place was?" Spike asked as they walked.

"No clue." Shelton responded.

"I always figured it was an old broadcast station" Jennifer Offered "there was a big satellite dish lying on the ground up there. What about you Rachele, what do you think?"

Rachele shrugged and answered "Maybe it was something to do with the military a long time ago, that old control panel up there looked pretty crazy."

Jen lowered her eyes in thought "you're right, it did. In fact, I've never heard of anything so sophisticated. I would love to have gotten a look underneath it."

Joseph spoke up and said "Well, you're about as far beneath it as I think you're going to get." Everyone snickered at this as they continued down the tunnel. Eventually they came to the source of the light, and what they saw made absolutely no sense in any of their minds. It was green and glowing, almost resembling Jell-O covering what they hoped would be the tunnel exit. It covered the entire wall and they couldn't see through it, no one was sure of what to do, they couldn't go back to be caught buy the putties but they saw no way around this glowing, green slime either. Seeing no alterative and also partly driven by curiosity, Joseph stepped forward and reached out to the slimy barrier.

Jennifer immediately reached out, grabbing his are to stop him. "What are you doing? We have no idea what this stuff is or what it could do to you." She said this, not with a lecturing tone in her voice but with tone of concern.

"Look," Joseph replied "we may not know what this stuff is but we've all heard the rumors about the Finster camps and between the two, I choose the mystery goo." Hesitating, Jennifer nodded and let go of Joseph's arm. Joseph again, reached out towards the Barrier and when his hand was less than an inch from it… He flicked it. Nothing happened, except the green goo rippled a bit. He reached out again, this time tapping a few times with the tip of his finger and again, nothing. Feeling that he may as well, he looked back at his friends and then plunged his arm through the slime up to his elbow.

"What does it feel like?" Shelton asked, looking both curious and grossed out.

Joseph removed his arm from the Jell-O and revealed a slight bit of moisture on his hand. "It feels cool" He responded "kind of like hand sanitizer."

The other's looked at him and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay" Spike spoke up "So what do we do with it?"

Joseph looked back at the glowing goo and replied "I didn't feel a wall on the other side, I think we can walk through."

They all looked at one another with looks of hesitation.

"And then what?" Jennifer asked "We don't know what's on the other side."

Shaking his head, Joseph repeated his previous point. "No, but we know what's back there" Pointing back to the start of the tunnel "And like I said, given the choice, I choose goo." With that, he turned around without hesitation and walked through the Green Barrier. Shocked but also feeling they had no choice, his friends took Joseph's example and one by one, followed him through.


	2. The World we know

**Rangers: 25 R.R.**

Episode 2: The World we know

Joseph and his friends could not have been less prepared for what they found upon emerging from the glowing, green, Jell-O like Barrier. They found themselves in the middle of room filled with control panels, computers and flashing lights. There was no sign of the tunnel they had just come from, nor was there any indication of Jell-O on the walls. What was more puzzling, was this equipment all looked brand new, not like the ruins on the hilltop. Everything was in pristine condition, as though it had only recently been built and installed. Centered in what they could only assume was the front of the room, was a large round monitor which was displaying the ruined building above and several puttie patrollers still searching the area.

"How are we seeing this?" Shelton asked "I mean, we didn't exactly have time to look around but I don't remember seeing a camera up there. Did you?" He asked Jennifer but she was preoccupied with a large green tube in the front left corner of the room that went from the floor up to the ceiling.

"what do you think this is?" she asked aloud, every one shook their heads indicating they hadn't the foggiest idea. As the group continued to survey the room, they took notice of what looked like seven display cases built into the back wall. Six of which were large enough for a person to stand in while the display case in the middle was slightly smaller and had several racks in it that were obviously meant to hold something. Having taken a look around for several minutes, the teens suddenly remembered that they needed to find a way out and get home before they were caught. Joseph, looking over his shoulder, spotted a what looked like a large bay door on the left wall.

"Over here guys" He motioned to his friends "this looks like a way out." At first, they tried to pry the door open by hand but it was no use.

"look for a button or switch" Jennifer instructed "I bet that's how his door works."

Shelton smirked and shook his head "A button or switch huh, where will we find that in this place?"

Everyone frowned at Shelton's sarcastic remark as they began scanning the wall around the door for a control of some kind. Spike, who was on his hands and knees, was inching his way right against the wall, moving towards the large green tube and then stopped in a dark archway that had gone unnoticed until this moment. Still on his knees, became fascinated with what looked like a pair of large brass shoes.

"I have a few chains at home that would go great with these" He thought to himself as he reached out to pick up the shoes. The brass wouldn't budge from the floor, spike was about to become frustrated before he noticed that the shoes were attached to a pair of brass pants. He peered up from the floor to behold that the shoes were already being worn by a small red person with brass arms & legs, a saucer for a head and a lightning bolt on his chest.

"I'm glad you like my shoes" said the little red person in a high-pitched voice that matched even Spike's "but I'm afraid their permanently attached."

Spike let out a high pitch shriek that brought the others running to his aid.

"Spike! What is it? What's wrong?" Rachele asked spike while at the same time, trying to calm him down.

"little man! Metal shoes! big round head!" The other's looked at each other, trying to make sense of what spike had just said.

"You're not making any sense man" Joseph said, placing his hand on spikes shoulder "what are you trying to tell us?" But before Spike could respond, another high-pitched voice replied from the darkened archway and said…

"I think he means me" and the little metal man with the saucer like head stepped into the light for all to see. Everyone took a step back, not knowing what to make of this new development on what had already been eventful night.

Jennifer was the first to speak up, her curiosity getting the better of her "where, who, what…?" she had so many questions, she wasn't sure what to ask first.

"please, remain calm, you are safe here. This is the Power Chamber, it was built many years ago to act as a listening post and serve as a headquarters for a group of planetary defenders. My name is Alpha 5, I am what you would refer to as a robot, built and programed to mimic humanoid behavior." There was a brief silence, no one knew what to say or even think for that matter. That is, until Shelton spoke up…

"So, you said we were safe. Does that mean you won't turn us in to the Putty patrol?"

Alpha didn't have a face so, reading his expressions was impossible but the teens could tell from the way his body jerked that this question came as a shock to him.

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi! Of course not, I would never turn anyone over to those bullies!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay well, we're glad to hear that" Joseph said aloud as the group tried to relax a bit. "Now, could you show us how to get out of here? Our parents will be worried.

Alpha nodded his large saucer head in reply "Yes, of course but first, may I ask what you know about your world?" and about what it was once like? Everyone looked at one another with a look of confusion.

"ah, man… not a pop quiz, I hate those." Spike wined from behind the others.

"Just what we're taught in school" Joseph replied "That people used to fight and kill each other all the time until the empress came and saved us. That she showed us how to live together peacefully and taught us to always work hard to help make the world better."

Alpha walked towards the control panel at the front of the room and began to push buttons "And your parents? All the people that were here when she arrived on earth, what do they say about that time?"

Again, everyone in the room looked at each other, this time shaking their heads. "My folks don't talk about it…" Joseph said first.

"Neither do my parents" Shelton added.

"My mom doesn't talk about it either, she just tells me to try as hard as I can I can in school" Jennifer stated, lowering her head.

"Mine likes to talk about his best friend from high school a lot and how they used to pick on dweebs…" Everyone looked at spike funny after he said this "But that's it and he says I should be better than he was."

Rachele shook her head when everyone looked to her for a reply "No" she said "Nothing."

Alpha turned back to the group from his buttons "and have you ever wondered why that is? For the third time, they all looked at one another as they shook their heads no. "Then what if I were to tell you that you've been lied to your entire lives?" Alpha asked, returning to his controls. Jennifer was the first to ask…

"What are talking about? Lied to about what?" she had an almost desperate look on her face.

Alpha lifted his head from his controls and replied "Everything" He pressed one last button on the control panel and the large round monitor began to glow with images. "This is the world you know" alpha pointed at the images of kids in school, people at their jobs and what the five friends knew to be everyday life. "And this" Alpha went on "is the world you don't know" The monitor was now showing dozens, maybe hundreds of people working in mines, on assembly lines and being crammed in small rooms in front of a large tv screen watching what looked like more Repulsa documentaries.

"What is this?" Rachele asked What are they doing?" Alpha pressed a button that brought up the image of a building that everyone recognized immediately.

"That's a Finster Facility!" Jennifer declared, almost yelling.

"Correct" said alpha "these are the true functions of the Finster Correctional Education Facilities. They are labor camps designed to strip a person of their humanity, forcing them to work in the most horrible conditions during the day and then being made to watch Rita Repulsa's propaganda all night, receiving little or no sleep. Once the prisoners are released back into the general public, they've lost all sense of what it means to be an individual." Everyone was in disbelief of what they were hearing, everyone except Jennifer, who looked terrified.

"I don't understand, why would they do this?" she asked. Alpha changed the image on the monitor again. "because this is how she has built her Utopia, by turning the people of earth into her blindly loyal subjects, so she can build this." The monitor showed what looked like a large group of giant missiles. "Are those Rockets?" Joseph asked, having seen something similar in the "The Tragic wars of planet Earth" documentary.

"Those are space craft" Alpha Replied" "Rita has been using the slave labor of the Finster Facilities to construct a fleet of ships for the last two decades, with them, she will launch her forces into space to conquer other worlds the way she has Earth." Alpha switched off the monitor and turned back to the teens. "This is the truth of your world, twenty-five years ago Rita and her followers conquered the earth using the methods I've shown you and by using propaganda along-side the finster facilities, she's kept everyone from learning the truth." Everyone stood in silence for several moments, no one wanting to be the first to speak. Finally, Shelton spoke up…

"No way" he said shaking his head "No way, no way, no way. I mean, this morning we were just kids in high school living in a boring little town. Now we're supposed to believe the empress is this evil, conquering… space witch. I don't buy it"

Alpha lowered his head for a moment and raised it again "I know it's difficult to except but it's the truth and there is so much more you still don't know about her."

Shelton began stepping back from the rest of the group "I don't want to know any more! I just want you to tell me how to get out of here so I can get home" The others nodded in agreement.

"Look, we're sorry but we really do need to get out of here" Joseph said with a slight look of regret on his face.

"Very well" Alpha conceded "but please, ask your parents, ask anyone who was there about the day Rita Repulsa arrived on earth and what life was like before she came." Nodding their heads for the sake of getting out of there, Alpha turned back to the control console. "Prepare for teleportation" before they could ask what Alpha meant by that, the group was overwhelmed with sensation of pins and needles all over their bodies and in an instant, they disappeared in a flash of light that resembled lightning.

"I'm sorry, I did my best" Alpha said aloud "But I'm afraid it may be too late for the people of Earth." The green tube in the front left corner of the room began to glow and a deep voice spoke from behind it.

"We must have faith Alpha, there is too much at stake for us to give up now.

The five teens found themselves standing in front of their high school, the pins and needles sensation had faded and been replaced with a cool breeze.

"what… Just happened?" spiked asked with a look of bewilderment on his face.

"I don't… I mean… What…?" Shelton was struggling to find the right question to ask first.

"That did just happen right?" Rachele finally asked aloud.

"Yeah, I think so…" Joseph said in response. They all stood in place for a moment, as if moving could somehow cause a new problem. Joseph looked over at Jennifer, who had yet to say anything. "You okay?" he asked, placing his hand on her shoulder.

Jennifer shook her head then responded "Y-yeah, I'm fine."

Not entirely convinced, Joseph didn't press the matter any further and instead took a position in front, facing his friends. "look guys, we're all tired and confused. I think the best thing for us to do right now is head home and try to figure this out later."

Nodding in agreement, everyone began the walk home. No one spoke as they all split off along the route to their respective homes, once they hit the three-mile mark, it was down to just Jennifer, Shelton and Joseph. Just as Jennifer was about to split off from the group, Joseph placed his hand on here shoulder one last time to ask if she was alright, she still looked pretty shaken up from their ordeal that night.

"Yeah, I'm ok. Just a really strange night, that's all." She managed a smile, bid her friends good night and turned down her street. Shelton and Joseph continued on down the dark street and eventually parted ways, returning to their respective homes for the night.

Jennifer slept late the following morning, not emerging from her room until after noon. Her mother was in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee and reading the front page of the Empress journal (the world's leading newspaper).

"You came in late last night" Her mother said, looking up at her daughter from behind the newspaper. "Yeah" Jennifer replied "Time just sort of got away from us." She was opening the refrigerator door to reach for a carton of orange juice.

"did you have fun?" Her mother asked as she took a sip of her coffee.

"I did, yeah. We just sat around, talked and listened to music but it was nice." Jennifer had poured some juice into a glass and had begun taking a sip.

"Good, good… Did you enjoy my cassettes?" Jennifer choked on her juice upon hearing her mother ask this question, she had taken the cassettes without her mother's knowledge. "thought I wouldn't notice, huh?"

Jennifer caught her breath and placed he glass on the kitchen counter. "Mom, I'm sorry. I just wanted everyone to have fun and no one at school likes the stuff on the radio." Her mother had now put her paper and coffee down on the table.

"Jennifer, you know I don't want you going through my things in the basement"

"I know Mom"

"I shouldn't even have those things but as long as they're down there, I want you to keep out of them."

"Why Mom, It's just old stuff. Why do keep acting like it's dangerous?"

"BECAUSE IT IS!"

Silence fell on the kitchen, Jennifer was standing in the middle of the floor with her arms crossed, as if trying to keep warm. Her mother was still sitting at the kitchen table, her hands pressed hard against the table top. After a moment or two, Jennifer spoke first.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I never wanted to upset you"

"it's alright sweet heart, I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to yell, I just…" Jennifer's mom hesitated "I've already lost your father, I can't lose you too."

Jennifer raised her eyebrows at this, her mother didn't normally mention her father. Jennifer sat down at the table with her mother and mustered the courage to ask the question that was now Bunning in the forefront of her mind.

"Mom, what happened to dad? He's been gone for so long, I can barely remember him and you never told me why." Her mother took a deep breath then waited a moment before speaking.

"When you were five years old…" her mother began "your father and I left you with a sitter for the night so we could spend a night alone together. We drove to the park, where we and our friends fom school used to spend a lot of time together. We set up a late-night picnic, your father brought his old stereo and cassettes so we could have some mood music, he didn't like the stuff on the radio either." She said this with a slight smile on her face. "We'd been there for about an hour and we were having such a good time just laughing, joking & flirting the way we did when we were younger. But…" she took another deep breath "Then they came."

"The putty patrollers?" Jennifer asked her mother

"Yes" Her mother replied "We heard footsteps a few yards away, your father stood up and stared through the tree-line and told me to hide in the bushes. I did and just as I crouched down, they came through the trees and circled your father. There was someone with them, a woman. She asked what your father was doing there and if he was with anyone, your father said he was waiting for someone but that he'd been stood up. The woman snickered and told him they had to ask him a few questions, then took him away." Jennifer's mother now had tears running down her cheeks. "I sat behind that bush for hours, too afraid to move. When I finally came home, your father wasn't here yet. I never saw him again."

Jennifer was now holding back tears of her own, she'd never seen her mother like this before. She debated whether or not to press the next question on her mind and ultimately decided to try her luck. "Mom, what were things like before Rita came?" Her mother's eyes widened "You were my age when she first arrived right? What was school like? What used to be on tv? Who were your friends…?" before she could ask any more questions, her mother stopped her.

"Please, Jennifer. That's enough, I've already said to much."

"But, Mom…"

"No More!" Her mother said sternly but with a look of genuine concern on her face.

Seeing that this was then end of this discussion, Jennifer stood up from the table and left the kitchen. She spent the rest of the day in her room.

The following day proceeded like any other, the five friends met on their way to school as usual. After arriving at school and checking their packs at the front entrance, the teens went to their lockers to grab the books they need for the day. Before heading to class, the group huddled together to have their first conversation about what had happened the other night. Joseph spoke first "So, I tried to get my folks to talk about what things used to be like… I got nothing."

"I did too" Shelton added "My dad just kept saying it was in the past and that the present is all that mattered anymore."

"My parents said the same thing," Rachele chimed in "they just said I should concentrate on school and make sure I get a good position after graduation."

"My dad talked a little bit about his old buddy from high school" Spike offered "He said that he'd lost count how many times the guy tripped and fell face first into one thing or another, I'd love to have been there to see that…" He caught himself before he got side-tracked "But that's all I got."

Joseph looked over at Jennifer, who had yet to pitch in. "what about your mom, did you ask her? Did she say anything?"

"No" she said quickly "I asked but she wouldn't tell me anything" Jennifer wasn't sure why she didn't tell her friends about her father, she just didn't.

The five made it to class just as the last bell rang and the day went along as it normally did, after a long and restless day, none of them able to stop thinking of what they had been told by Alpha 5 two nights ago, they all left the campus together. Before splitting off down their individual routes, they agreed to meet later that evening at the abandoned building in town, between the school and the park. Jennifer arrived home to an empty house, her mother hadn't come home from work yet, she worked at the grocery store in town. Jennifer was about to go to her room after grabbing a snack from the kitchen but then she saw the door to the basement from the corner of her eye. She couldn't help herself, she opened the door and climbed down the stairs, heading straight to where her mother kept her old things. Not sure exactly what it was she was searching for, Jennifer began rummaging through the old boxes, finding everything from more cassettes to her old baby shoes. Just as she was about to give up and put the box away, she spotted a picture face down in the bottom of the box. She picked up the picture and turned it over to see it was a picture of her mother, much younger, along-side what had to be four of her friends. She was about to put the photograph back in the box until she got a better look at the guy standing in the middle of the group and realized that it was her father, looking almost as he did in her memories. Jennifer put the photograph in her sweater pocket and briefly looked through the box again, finding only some old spandex gym clothes that most likely belonged to her mother while she in high school. Finding nothing else of interest, she put the box back on the shelf and went back upstairs until it was time to meet her friends.

Jennifer met Shelton and Joseph in the normal spot as they headed into town, the two were talking about the conversations they'd had with their parents earlier that day.

"Still wasn't able to get anything out of my folks" Shelton was saying "after a while they started ignoring me."

"I didn't do any better" Joseph added "my Dad just shakes his head and tells me to never mind. How about you Jen? Any luck?"

"My mom wasn't home from work." Jennifer replied but offed nothing further.

The three continued down the street as the sun had begun to set in the distance, they were soon joined by Rachele and Spike and the five friends walked past the school. They soon arrived at the old building just short of the distance to the park, there was a sign on the ground in front of the building that read "Angel Grove Youth…" the rest of the sign was broken off and nowhere to be seen. The front door had been locked with a chain and pad lock but there was a back door that came in through what used to be an old kitchen. Once inside, they all took seats around the dusty old bar.

"Ok, so… Why are we here?" Shelton asked.

"I think we really need to talk about what happened the other night guys" Joseph responded.

"What's to talk about?" Shelton replied "as far as I'm concerned, it never happened. We had a bonfire, we almost got busted, we made it home, the end."

"Shelton, it wasn't that simple and you know it" Rachele retorted "We can't just pretend nothing happed after what we saw, after what we heard."

"Why not?" Shelton asked, looking almost in a panic "I can, I'm doing it tight now, see me not having a clue what you're talking about."

"look, I don't want to take sides guys…" Spike chimed in "But I distinctly remember a little Robot with a big round head"

"OH, COME ON!" Shelton was now in a full-on breakdown "What are we supposed to do? March up Main Street, sit in at town hall, start a revolution? As soon as we say one word, ONE WORD OUT OF LINE! They'll take us away and we'll end up just like all the rest, is that what we want?"

"He's right" Jennifer finally spoke up, after listening in silence "If we start asking questions, if we do anything that they don't want us to do, they'll come take us away and we might never come back."

There was a short pause as everyone considered what had been said, finally, Joseph stood up in front of the group.

"So, that's it? We just forget it ever happened? Everything we saw, everything we were told about the world, about Rita. You guys know that at least some of it was true, I don't know about the space ships or conquering other planets but… The Finster Facilities, People disappearing for weeks at a time and coming back completely different, are we really ok with that?"

There was another brief silence, everyone looked at everyone else. Shelton was the first break the silence.

"Guys, I know there's stuff going on that… Isn't right. "his panicky domineers was now replaced by a look of solemn "But I don't want to be taken away. I don't want my parents, my sister, I don't want them to be taken away. I know I push the envelope sometimes but when it comes this, I just can't."

Joseph looked around at everyone "This is how we all feel? We're just going to pretend it never happened?" The silence around the room gave him the answer he was waiting for. "Okay, I guess that's it then."

The teens exited through the kitchen door they had come in from, as they were about to start the five-mile walk home, they heard voices from the other side of the building. The group walked around the building to see a couple of kids they knew from school spray-painting the side of the building. As they watched from behind an old dumpster, the two created and image that blended several colors together. It wasn't clear what they were trying to create but before they could finish, another group of individuals came into view… Putty Patrollers. There were four of them and they were approaching the would-be artists, most likely not to critique the artwork. The predictable was about to happen, the putties moved in quickly before the artists even knew they were there and cornered them against the wall of the building. Joseph and his friends watched as the putties grabbed the other two teens and began to drag them away into the night. Jennifer felt an uncontrollable urge to do something, anything. She kept replaying what her mother had told her the day before in her mind, about her father being taken away by putties and never to be seen or heard from again. She couldn't stand it anymore, she was going to make a mad dash at the putty patrollers, she didn't know how but she had to save those other two kids. Then, just as she raised her leg to take her first step, Shelton took off in a dead sprint directly at the putties and the other two kids, yelling at the top of his lungs. Everyone was in shock and didn't have a clue what to say or think, all they could do was take off after him, grabbing old pipes and pieces of wood from the ground as they ran. The putties turned around just in time for Shelton to spear one to the ground and begin whaling on its grey, expressionless face with mounted punches. The other three putties grabbed him trying to pull him off the fourth, giving the other two teens the opportunity to make a run for it. Shelton's friends joined the fray and began swinging, pipes, boards and chains with-out thought. Everyone was now acting on pure instinct & adrenalin and before they realized it, the putties had been reduced to piles of what looked like dry clay. When the group finally stopped and saw what was left on the ground, there was a long pause while everyone caught their breath.

"Shelton?" Jennifer approached "what was that? I thought you didn't…"

"I don't." Shelton swiftly replied "But eventually, they'll come for us And our families anyway, the best way for me to protect my parents and my sister, is to make sure they never do."

Jennifer nodded and turned to the pile of putty remains, kneeling down to examine them. "Do you know what this means?"

Everyone stared at her with blank looks on their face

"These things can be killed, and if they can be killed…"

"Then they can be beaten." Joseph declared and everyone nodded in agreement. "We all have questions, we all know what happened here tonight will keep happening until someone stands up and says no… And we all know where we have to go to get answers."

No one wasted any time, keeping a quick and steady pace, the teens turned putty slayers made their way back to the site of the bonfire. Treading carefully up the hillside, they watched out for more putties as they approached the fence. When they arrived however, they found that the split in the fence had been repaired and there was now barbed and razor wire raped around the top of the fence. They were about to begin circling the perimeter of the fence to find another way in when suddenly… They felt it. The familiar sensation of pins and needles throughout their bodies and with a flash of light, much like lightning, they found themselves back in the room beneath the old building on the hilltop. Alpha 5 was standing at the main control console, directly in front of them.

"Welcome back" he said in his high-pitched voice "I'm sure you have many questions."

"You could say that" Joseph replied, looking back at his friends. "But we aren't really sure what to ask first so… Maybe you could start at the beginning."

"In time, you will learn everything but I am not the one to whom you should pose your questions" Alpha then turned to face the large green tube in the front left corner of the room.

"Then… Who are we supposed to ask? Spike asked, a look of sarcastic confusion in his face.

"I can answer all of your questions" said a deep voice from seemingly nowhere.

"Uummm…. Who said that? Spiked asked, pointing his finger up at the ceiling

"That would be me" The voice said again. The green tube began to glow and a Giant face appeared with in it. "Welcome Humans."


	3. The Truth behind the Lies

**Rangers: 25 R.R.**

Episode 3: The Truth behind the Lies

No one could believe what they were seeing, there in front of them, was a giant floating head inside of the large green tube in the front left corner of the room. None of the teens could take their eyes off of it, how was it even in there? Finally, after a long, awkward pause, Joseph finally spoke up.

"Who are you?" He asked the giant head in the tube.

"I am Zordon" The head replied "I am an interdimensional being, trapped in a time warp. You have already met Alpha 5, my faithful companion. As you know, your world is under the control of an evil dictator, Rita Repulsa. She came to earth twenty-five years ago and conquered the planet with her force of monsters and Putties, though you have been told a much more light-hearted version of this history. Are you prepared to her the entire story?

"I'm still trying to figure out.l your head…" Everyone stared at Shelton following this smart-ass remark "But it can wait" he said, lowering his head and taking a step back.

"We're ready, tell us everything" Joseph Responded, looking as though he were about to go into battle.

"Very well" Zordon began "Ten Thousand years ago, there was a great battle between good and evil, at the conclusion of the battle, the evil was locked away never to be released."

"Would it be fair to guess that Rita was the evil?" Rachele asked, her finger pressed against her cheek.

"That is Correct" Zordon replied.

"Wait…" Spiked lifted his finger into the air "wouldn't that make her, like… Over 10,000 years old?"

"That is Also correct" said Zordon, nodding his incredibly large head

"Wow, she looks good for an old lady." spike said, smirking and nodding his head. The other's showed him a look of disgust "What? She does."

"How is that possible?" Jennifer posed the next question "Even for an alien, that has to be a long time."

"You are right" Zordon began to explain "when she and her henchmen were locked away, the Capsule in which they were imprisoned placed them in a form of suspended animation."

"That means they were placed in a deep sleep that kept them from aging." Alpha pitched in.

"But she was accidently freed twenty-five years ago, by a pair of earth astronauts, who did not know the nature of the capsule or the evil contained within it." Zordon continued "After she escaped, her first order of business was to attack the Command Center directly, the ruined building that stands above us, knowing that it was the only thing on this planet that could stand in her way. Alpha and I detected her escape and had already taken steps to thwart her plans but we were too late. Almost as soon as the five candidates we selected to oppose her arrived, Rita attacked with the full force of her power. The Command Center was completely Destroyed and the candidates we selected were killed." Zordon appeared to be taking a deep breath, as this was probably a sensitive topic for him to discuss. "Their lives were needlessly wasted and their blood is on my conscience."

Everyone waited a moment before speaking again, this was obviously difficult for Zordon to discuss and the teens felt like a moment of silence was appropriate. Finally, Joseph broke the silence. "So, if everything was destroyed, then what's all this?"

"The power Chamber was an experimental facility I'd been working on for some time before Rita attacked" Alpha explained "It just needed a few finishing touches before it was ready to function as a headquarters and as you can imagine, I've had ample time to work on them. Luckily, Rita has no idea it exists."

"Then, what's the hold up?" Shelton asked abruptly "I mean, if you've been here for twenty-five years and you've got all of this… Why couldn't you stop her? Or fight back or start a rebellion or something…?"

"I'm afraid after what happened to those young souls all those years ago, I've been… Hesitant to ask anyone else to place themselves at risk and there is little I can do in my present state but offer guidance."

"And he doesn't look like much of a fighter." Spike chimed in "No offence" he added, looking at Alpha.

"What exactly was it you were asking them to do? "Joseph asked Zordon Directly.

"To become the defenders of this planet, to become an elite team capable of wielding extraordinary power. This power would have made them a Formidable force and with it, they could very well have saved this world from Rita.

"Super Heroes!" Spike suddenly seemed very excited, as though some one just offered him an arena fight. "You were going to make them Super Heroes!"

"As the protectors of Earth, it would have been their sole responsibility to defend all life on this planet not only from Rita but from any evil that would seek to conquer or destroy it. They would have been known to one & all… As The Power Rangers.

There was a glow of light behind the group of five teens and they all turned around to see the empty display cases one the back wall they had noticed during their first visit to the power chamber were no longer empty. They were instead filled with costumes, each a different color. The suits looked like they were made of spandex and were of an identical design, except for the helmets, which all appeared to resemble different Dinosaurs. Each suite was a solid color of red, black, blue, yellow and pink. They all sported white gloves and boots with a diamond pattern wrapped around the wrist and ankles in the color of the suits themselves. There was a white belt Wrapped around the waists with a belt buckle that housed a gold coin, a different dinosaur engraved on each and a large white diamond pattern wrapped around the upper torso. In the center display case was now a grouping of various weapons including a Bow, an Axe, a pair of daggers, a double headed lance and a sword. The seventh display case remained empty, the one left of center.

"These are the uniforms of The Power Rangers." Zordon began again They will grant the wearer protection from enemy attacks as well as increased strength, agility, reflexes and access to an arsenal of advanced weaponry."

"Where's the last suit?" Jennifer asked, noticing the empty seventh display case. "and there's a weapon missing from the middle case"

"I'm afraid those powers were lost in the great conflict ten millennia ago" Zordon replied.

"I don't understand" Rachele began to ask, turning back around to face Zordon "Why are you showing us all of this?"

"Because he wants us to do it." Joseph responded in Zordon's place. He had now turned around to face Zordon and Alpha 5 "He wants us to be The Power Rangers and fight Rita. Is that right?" he asked zordon directly.

"Yes" Zordon replied "That is correct"

"Alright then" Joseph began, looking back at his friends then back at Zordon "I'm in."

"I'm in too." Jennifer declared, stepping forward to take position next to Joseph.

"This guy is going to make us super heroes…" Spike began "That's the next best thing to being arena champion." he said with a look of excitement "I'm definitely in."

"I've wanted to do more to help people my entire life" Rachele said as she turned to join the others "and this looks like the best way to do it."

"Shelton," Joseph looked to his friend "what about you"?

"I'm scared guys" Shelton began "I'm scared their going to come and take my family, my baby sister. I can't lose them." He paused and lowered his head "But like I said on the street…" he raised his head again and moved to join his friends "The best way to protect them, is to stop Rita before she comes for them, I'm in." he then turned to face the Ranger uniforms in the display cases "But I'm not wearing that, me and tights… that's just not a good idea."

Everyone began to laugh at this as Shelton smirked and put his hands up at his sides.

"I'm afraid the uniforms are necessary" Zordon interrupted "without them, you cannot hope to defeat Rita's horde of monsters and army of putties."

"Well, actually…" Alpha chimed in "it is Technically possible to alter the appearance of the suits by some slight reprogramming of the Power Morphers."

"Power Morphers?" Jennifer Asked "what are those?"

Alpha turned to the main control panel, pressed several buttons and suddenly, the five belt buckles that were displayed on the suits in the display cases were now lined up in a row on the base of the computer panel.

"These are your Power Morphers, the keys to your power" Zordon explain "When in danger, hold your morpher to the sky and call out the name of your Dinosour, doing so will morph you into your ranger form.

"Um, question" Spike chirped "what's the deal with dinsours? I mean, we know what they are, we've seen pictures of them in old books and stuff but… Why?"

"You will Learn more about the complete capabilities of you powers in time but for now, I believe it is best for you to return to your homes until alpha has completed the modifications to your morphers."

"Can I help?" Jennifer asked "I'd really like to learn more about this."

"That's alright with me" Alpha said, almost sounding excited "it would be nice to an extra pair of hands after all these years and to have some extra company, no offence Zordon."

"None taken Alpha" said Zordon "I do not see why not, Alpha can teleport you back to your home once you have completed your work. As for the rest of you, we can send you back to your homes now, if you are ready"

"You mean the same way we got here?" Spike Squeaked "How exactly does that work?"

"Do not fear" Zordon reassured them "Teleportation is perfectly safe and will instantly transport you to any destination on the globe"

"The teens all looked at each other, feeling nervous, then nodded to signify that they were ready. Alpha turned to his control panel once again and began pushing buttons, then turned to face the teens. "Make sure you are in a safe place tomorrow evening to be teleported back here, your morphers should be ready by then." They all nodded and Alpha pressed one last button "Teleporting now."

Jennifer watched as her four friends disappeared in a flash of multicolored light, this was the first time she'd seen it from the outside. Each of her friends glowed a different color as they vanished, Joseph Glowed Red, Rachele Pink, Spike Black and Shelton Yellow. After they were gone, she turned to alpha and asked "Okay, what do we do first?

Shelton Found himself in his bedroom, unsure he'd ever get used to that Teleport thing. Looking at the clock on his wall, he realized how late it had gotten and began getting undressed so he could crash for the night. Just as he was about to lay down, there was a knock at his door and his mother's voice called out.

"Baby, are you in there?" his mother asked

"Yeah momma, I'm just getting ready for bed" Shelton responded

"Boy, I didn't even hear you come in. Why were you out so late?"

"Sorry Momma, I was just out with Joseph & the gang and we lost track of time"

"Now you know I like your friends" his mother began "you're all good kids but you got to be more careful, it's dangerous being out late"

"I know Momma" Shelton answered "I'll be more careful, I promise."

"Have you checked in on your sister?" his mother asked

"I was just about to; I'm just getting into my PJs"

Shelton finished Changing then walked out of his bedroom door to walk down the hall to his sister's room. His sister always kept her door closed, it wasn't that she wanted the privacy, she just didn't want her family walking by her door and looking in with that look of worry and concern all the time. Shelton knocked on the door and called out in a hushed voice. "Margie, you awake?"

"Yeah, come on in Shelly" his sister's voice answered from the other side of the door.

Shelton opened the door and stepped lightly as he walked in. "You know I hate it when you call me that"

"I know" she replied grinning "that's why I do it."

Shelton sat down in a chair next to his sister's bed, she was about thirteen years old and had a sickly appearance. "How are you feeling?" he asked his sister.

"Same as I was last night… And the night before last… And last week." She answered with a mildly annoyed look on her face.

"I know, I know" Shelton said, nodding his head "but you know Momma wants all of us to check on you before we crash every night."

"Doesn't stop Daddy from falling asleep on the couch every night" Margie said, chuckling.

"Well, you would too if you had to deal with those Puttie faced weirdos all day every day" Shelton responded.

Their father was a police officer and often had to put up with the Putty patrollers and their superiors.

"Yeah, I know" Margie responded, shaking her head "I don't know how he does it without getting creeped out."

"Is he home from the station yet?" Shelton asked is sister

"Not yet" She answered "He called from his desk and said something had come up, He'd be home late"

"Can't say I'm surprised" Shelton muttered, shaking his head.

"Well, as you can see, I'm still here and you can go to bed now" Margie said, looking past Shelton at the door.

"Okay, Okay" Shelton said, smiling and nodding "Goodnight Margie" He kissed his sister on her forehead and stood up to leave the room.

"Goodnight Shelly" His sister said, smiling.

The next morning came sooner than Shelton would have liked, as he dragged himself out of bed to get dressed, he could hear his father in the kitchen. Shelton quickly dressed and headed down stairs to catch his dad before he left for the station. As he walked through the kitchen door, Shelton's father was just pulling a bagel out of the taster.

"Hey Daddy" He called out as he made his way to the refrigerator

"Hey there son" his father replied "What time did you come in last night?"

"Earlier than you" Shelton responded, smirking "was everything ok last night?"

"Nope, I'm afraid not. At first it was just a graffiti call but when we got on site, well… We found something that the Putty division didn't like." Shelton's father had a look of concern as he said this, as though he sensed impending disaster.

Shelton knew exactly what his father was talking about, he had forgotten about the pile of rubble he and his friends had left after they beat the putty patrollers down into the street with their make shift weapons the previous night.

"What was it?" Shelton asked, trying to sound casual.

"It's better I didn't talk about it son, just try not to worry about it and focus on school."

"Okay Daddy, if you say so." He responded to his father, still trying to sound as if nothing was on his mind.

Shelton quickly ate breakfast and headed out the door to meet his friends in their normal manner. When he and Joseph met up with Jennifer, she looked absolutely exhausted.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" Shelton asked his yawning friend.

"Not a wink" Jennifer replied, still yawning "Alpha Teleported me home just in time to get ready for school."

"You were at the Power Chamber all night?" Joseph asked with surprise in his voice.

"Yeah, I couldn't tear myself away from what we were doing." Jennifer said "It's amazing, the technology I was working with, just the fact that it exists is exciting to me. I can't wait to learn more about it."

"Well, you're going to get your chance" Joseph replied solemnly "because, whatever we're about to start, I doubt we'll finish it overnight."

The three met with Spike and Rachele in front of the school and it was then that Shelton told his friends about the conversation he'd had with his father that morning.

"listen Guys" he began "They already know about last night."

"What!?" His friends all reacted at once.

"They don't know who" Shelton continued "But my dad said they found something that bothered the putties… Near some graffiti."

Everyone stood in silence for a moment as they considered what had been said, finally Joseph spoke up.

"Okay, best thing to do is act normal and go about are days as usual. We don't want to give anyone any reason to look at us differently… Or at all for that matter" he added.

The five all nodded in agreement and proceeded to check their packs at the front entrance of the building. School could not have passed by any slower that day, each class felt as though it took three times as long as it normally would have. When the day finally came to an end, just as the final bell was about to ring, there was an announcement made over the intercom…

"To all students" A woman's voice began "Anyone with knowledge or information regarding a vandalism in the form of graffiti, which took place last night in the immediate area, should report to the office following the final bell or proceed to Angel Grove Police Department following the end of class. That is all."

Shelton and his friends all shot a glance at one another as the bell rang and they all stood up from their desks to leave school for the day. Once they'd checked their packs and had made it outside of the building, they began debating where they could meet for teleportation that evening as the old building where they had met before was now compromised.

"What about the park?" Rachele asked as they walked down the street.

"No way" Jennifer responded quickly "There's just as many putties there as any other place."

"What about back at the school?" Joseph suggested "That's where Alpha sent us the first time we found the Power Chamber, it seems to be safe at night."

"Dude… Nah" Shelton scoffed "I'm not going anywhere near that place if I don't have too."

"Okay" Joseph rolled his eyes "So what does that leave us?"

"The basement in my building" Spike chimed in "the only person that goes down there is my dad and even then, not that much. It's perfect."

"Okay then," Joseph said "we'll all meet back at Spikes building around dusk, sound good?"

Everyone agreed and split off to return to their respective homes.

Shelton returned home to find his mother and sister in the living room, his sister lying on the couch, his mother in the arm chair.

"Hey baby" his mother greeted him as he walked in the front door "how was school?"

"It was school" he responded as he made his was across the room "nothing special."

"Hmm," his mother groaned "I don't know who talks less, you or your father."

Suddenly remembering what his father had been working on, Shelton seized his opportunity. "Speaking of daddy, did he say anything about that case he's been on?"

"Naw baby, we haven't heard from him since he left for work this morning" his mother now looked at him with a look of curiosity "why are you so interested in your daddies work all of the sudden?"

"Just curios" Shelton fibbed "he mentioned it this morning before school." He took a seat next to his sister and began rummaging through his backpack for his homework assignment, he figured he may as well until it was time to meet his friends at Spike's place.

Dusk came at last and Shelton was on his way up the street to meet Joseph at their normal street corner, he hadn't gotten far from his home when he caught sight of a group of putties moving the opposite direction on the other side of the street. At first, he figured it was just another patrol but then he saw them approach a house. Shelton slowed his pace so he could observe what was going on, it wasn't normal for putties to approach someone's home… unless they were looking for something or someone. They disappeared through the front door of the house for just a few moments but then reemerged and proceeded to the next home. It wasn't hard to discern what they were doing, going door to door meant they were definitely looking for someone. Shelton had his money on that they were looking for the graffiti artists from the other night, probably under the assumption that they were responsible for turning those putty patrollers into a pile of dirt. He decided to quicken his pace and stay out of dodge; the putties didn't seem to be interested in him and he wanted to keep it that way. Shelton began to approach the usual street corner where he and Joseph normally met and he could see Joseph approaching from the right in the distance but there was some one behind him… Putties and they appeared to following him. The two met at the corner, Joseph was already aware of his shadows and had been trying to walk normally so as not to arouse suspicion, it seemed to be working for the moment. The two continued up the street, on route to the spot where they normally met Jennifer, and their followers kept pace with them. They came to their normal rendezvous but Jennifer hadn't arrived yet, since the putties had not yet made any hostile action, they decided to stand and wait for Jennifer and hope the putties just passed them by. Sure enough, the putties caught up to them and for a moment, appeared as though they would wait on the corner as well but then continued on their way. Jennifer soon joined them and now the three teens were following the putty patrol.

"What's the deal with the Putties?" Jennifer asked her friends as they walked up the street, carful to keep a safe distance between them-selves and the patrol.

"I don't know" Joseph replied "they got behind me right after I left my house and I've been trying to keep cool since."

"They aren't the only ones in the neighborhood either" Shelton added "there was another patrol going door to door on my street, I think their looking for the kids we saved the other night, the graffiti guys."

"Yeah" Jennifer agreed "they probably think those guys are the ones who killed the putties."

"Regardless, we can't meet at Spikes place until we lose the paparazzi up there." Joseph stated "Any ideas?"

"let's try going the long way" Shelton suggested "Go past the school then circle around."

"It's worth a shot," Jennifer chimed in "we're almost to the school anyway."

"Sounds like a plan, we'll take the next left after the school." Joseph declared.

The three continued past the school, then took the following left, as panned. For a moment, it appeared that they had left the putties behind and they weren't really interested in the teens but that was wishful thinking. The three had only made it a little way up the street when Jennifer looked behind them and there the putties were again, keeping their distance but keeping pace with the teens.

"Guys, what do we do?" Shelton asked "We can't lead them back to spikes place.

"We can't keep wandering either" Jennifer added "Alpha is going to press that button whether we're at spike's or not and if those putties see us teleport, Rita will have a reason to come after us and our families."

"Okay, then we need a place to hide and we need it now." Joseph was looking around, seeing nothing but other houses and street lamps, no good hiding places. "okay… Hiding is out, looks like we'll have to fight these guys."

"What!?" Shelton looked flabbergasted "Here? While it's still broad daylight?"

"Shelton's right Joseph," Jennifer interjected "too many people could see and we don't know if we can beat these thigs with-out weapons."

"You mean like a pipe or a 2-by-4." Shelton snickered.

"Not the time Shelton." Joseph said, unamused "In any case I don't think we have much choice, we can't let them see us teleport and we can't lead them back to spikes, that leaves one option…"

Nodding their heads in agreement, the three teens stopped dead in their tracks and turned to face the putties, who did not stop in their tracks. The putties drew closer and just as Shelton and his friends prepared to attack first, the putties disappeared in a flash of light.

"Um… What?" Shelton was understandably confused.

"I don't… Um…" Joseph was also at a loss for words.

"It was Alpha" Jennifer declared.

"How do you know that?" Shelton asked.

"When I stayed at the power chamber to help alpha work on the morphers, I watched you guys as he teleported you out and it looked exactly like that." Jennifer explained.

"Okay, we'll figure it out later. Right now, we have to get to spike's" Joseph stated and the teens began to jog the rest of the way to Spike's apartment building. Once they arrived, they saw that Spike and Rachele were waiting for them in front of the building.

"What took you so long?" Spike looked as though he were in full on panic mode.

"We had some fans," Joseph explained as Rachele and spiked looked on with looks of confusion "a group of putties were following us."

"Putties following you" Rachele was in disbelief.

"Oh No! We're totally busted!" If Spike wasn't panicking before, he was now.

"Calm down spike," Joseph tried to be reassuring "we don't think they know anything about us, they were going door to door, probably looking for the guys we saved the other night."

"How did you lose them?" Rachele asked.

"I think Alpha teleported them away." Jennifer explained.

"You know guys, as much as I'd love to chat out here and catch some rays, don't you think we should continue this in the basement like we planned in the first place…" Shelton was darting his eyes towards the front door of Spikes building.

"He's right, let's get inside." Joseph lead his friends through the front door then let Spike take the lead so they could follow him to the basement. Spike lead them down a hallway behind the building leasing office then down a flight of stairs, at the bottom of the stair way was a door with what looked like wood rot in the top left corner. The teens opened the door and walked through it, inside they found a dark and dingy room full of cobwebs, rusty pipes and piles of dust. There were also old work benches, power tools and chests that were probably filled with more tools. Everyone had a disgusted look on their face, everyone except Joseph, who appeared to surveying the room.

"This place is beyond nasty." Shelton was stroking his finger along a work bench with a thick lair of dust on it.

"Doesn't your building have a cleaning staff?" Rachele asked as she pulled cobwebs out of her hair.

"Well, actually it's just my dad," Spike began to explain "he does everything for the building himself. Cleaning, maintenance, he even shows apartments to new residents when the leasing office is on lunch. So, since he's the only person who comes down here, he kind of lets it go."

Everyone stood in silence for a moment, feeling a bit ashamed. None of them would have said anything about the condition of the room if they'd known just how much Spikes dad had on his plate.

"Sorry Spike," Joseph apologized for the group "we didn't know."

"It's cool," Spike replied "my dad doesn't mind, he says it keeps him out of trouble."

Everyone giggled at this but before they could continue the conversation, they were all over come with the familiar sensation of pins and needles throughout their bodies and suddenly, they found themselves in the Power chamber.

"Welcome back everyone." Alpha 5 greeted them with excitement in his voice.

"Alpha," Jennifer approached him "were you the one who teleported those putties off the street earlier?"

"Of course," Alpha acknowledged "as much as I would have enjoyed watching you reduce those clay bullies to rubble in the middle of the street, I thought it would be best if you didn't make a scene."

"The putties saw us," Joseph began to ask with concern in his voice "where did you send them?"

"To the bottom of the ocean," Alpha responded gleefully "where they can't cause us any problems."

Everyone smiled at the thought of the putties becoming soggy and falling apart under water but now, it was time to get serious.

"Attention everyone," Zordon had appeared in the large green tube and began to speak. "the time has come for you to receive your new powers. From this day forward, your lives as you have known them, will be over. You will be the front line in the revolution that will soon begin, to free your world from the rule of Rita Repulsa and her minions. Though this is not the purpose for which the power was created, it is the purpose it must now serve. Are you ready to except your new responsibilities, are you ready to become… The Power Rangers?"


	4. The Mission

**Rangers: 25 R.R.**

Episode 4: The Mission

"This is it guys" Joseph said as he turned to his friends "last chance to change your minds and go home. After this, there's no turning back"

"Joseph is right" Zordon cautioned "Once you've accepted these gifts, it will become your sole responsibility to fight evil in whatever form it may take and free this world from the clutches of Rita Repulsa and her minions."

Everyone took only the briefest of moments to consider what had been said, Spike was the first to break the silence.

"look, you had me at super heroes." he said smiling.

"All I've ever wanted to do was help people," Rachele repeated herself from the previous night "this is my chance to do that in the biggest way possible."

"I'm not letting these guys anywhere near my family" Shelton stepped forward "My dad has looked after us my whole life, now it's my turn."

"I think it goes without saying that I'm all in." Joseph said, turning to face Zordon.

"And you Jennifer?" Zordon asked "Will you accept the burden?"

Jennifer hesitated for a moment, appearing to be lost in her thoughts. After several seconds, she snapped out of it and approached he friends, pulling an old photograph out of her sweater pocket.

"I took this picture from my mom's old things in our basement" She pointed at the picture "it was taken when she was the same age we are now. That's my mom, on the left of center" She continued to point "and the guy in the middle… Is my dad"

Everyone raised their eye brows at this, Jennifer had never mentioned her dad before accept to say he had been gone since she young.

"The putties took him away when I was only five, my mom and I haven't seen or heard from him since. I know I'll probably never see him again, I'm not doing this hoping to find him." She took a deep breath before continuing "I'm doing this to make sure nothing like that ever happens to anyone else ever again. I don't ever want another family to be ripped apart because of THAT WITCH!"

Jennifer had tears in her eyes, it was all she could do to keep herself from a full-on melt down. Everything she had been feeling for the last few days suddenly came rushing to the surface and she made no effort to old it in any longer. Joseph put his hand on her shoulder, Shelton placed his hand on her other shoulder and Rachele embraced her in a sisterly hug. Spike stood there, some-what awkwardly, then everyone turned to face him.

"Look, I know what it's like" He said as he fidgeted with the chains on his torn jeans "Having just one parent and not knowing where the other one is, it's rough. But, I'm… here for ya. Ya know, if you need to talk." Spike was now scratching his head with nervousness, it was clear that this was far removed for the "Bad Boy" persona he always tried to portray.

Jennifer smiled and embraced Spike in a tight hug which made him feel both uncomfortable but also fuzzy inside. After the teens had their moment, they all turned to Zordon, standing in a line.

"We're all in Zordon" Joseph declared "What do we do first?"

"Then it is time for you to receive your Power Morphers. Alpha, if you please" Zordon directed Alpha 5.

"Right Zordon" Alpha said cheerily as he began to pass out the morphers.

"Joseph, Powerful and Bold" Zordon began as each teen received their morpher "You shall be the Red Ranger and Leader of the team. Spike, you are brave and cleverer than you let on, you shall be the Black ranger. Rachele, Graceful and smart, you are the Pink Ranger. Jennifer, patient and wise, the power of the Blue Ranger shall be yours. Shelton, you are Fearless and strong, you will serve as the Yellow Ranger."

"So, do we wear the costumes under our regular cloths all the time or just keep them hidden in our closet? Where are the suits anyway?" Shelton asked, pointing to the now empty Display cases on the back wall.

"That's the cool part" Jennifer said, sounding excited for the first time "all we have to do is hold the morphers out in front of us and call out the name of our dinosaurs. The suits will just appear on us and we'll be instantly ready for a fight."

"Okay, that is cool" Shelton said nodding his head "but what do the outfits look like? That is what you were doing all night last night… right?"

Everyone rolled their eyes at Shelton's vain question but Jennifer seemed happy to answer, she was very enthusiastic about all the technology that now surrounded them and he opportunity to learn more about it.

"Trust me, you'll like it" she answered Shelton.

"And now Rangers" Zordon began again "You must learn the three rules of being a Power Ranger. First, never use your powers for personal gain. Second, you must never reveal your identity or Rita would surely begin to come after your loved ones. Finally, never escalate a fight, unless Rita forces you to."

The Rangers stood in silence for a moment, then Joseph asked the question that was on all of their minds.

"Zordon, if we are starting a revolution, if we are the first to begin his rebellion, we will have to attack first… Won't we?"

"You are correct Joseph" Zordon lowered his head, as though he was almost ashamed of what he was about to say. "In the past, the power was meant only as a means to defend the weak and protect the innocent but… With the situation being what it is, I'm afraid we will have to forgo the third rule on many occasions to come."

"None of us are doing this to pick a fight" Joseph said reassuringly "all we want, is to make our world a better place."

"I am very glad to hear this Rangers, I am convinced that Alpha and I have chosen this new team well." Zordon said as he smiled at his new team of Rangers "and now, I believe it is time for our 1st mission to begin."

Alpha moved back to the main control console and began to press buttons which brought up the image of the space ships he had shown them two nights earlier.

"This is one of Rita's war ship productions plants" Alpha began to explain "there are several around the globe but this is her primary Facility. Our goal is to destroy it and all of the ships that are still docked there."

"Will that stop her from launching her invasion into space?" Joseph asked.

"Not all at once" Alpha replied "but it will slow her progress considerably, giving us time to select and destroy another strategic target."

"Okay" Shelton interrupted "I get that it's important to keep Rita from going into space and taking over other planets, but what about kicking her butt here so our planet doesn't have to put up with her anymore?"

"That is, of course, one of our goals" Zordon began "but in order to achieve complete success in this endeavor, we must accomplish many things at once and unfortunately, it will take time."

Shelton nodded his head in acknowledgement, then turned his attention back to the monitor. "Alright, so how do we blow this stuff up? That place is pretty big, right?"

"Correct" Alpha began again "in fact, the facility is miles across and it would take an explosion of significant force to destroy the entire thing. That is why we are only going to destroy two sections, the hanger bays where the completed ships are housed and the primary forge, where all of the raw materials that go into the construction of the ships are stored and processed. This way, not only do we diminish the size of her fleet thus far, but the facility itself becomes useless until Rita's minions can affect repairs, which will take time."

"So How do we blow it up" Spike asked.

Alpha walked over to the darkened archway where the Rangers had found him two nights earlier. After a moment, he returned with what looked like two digital clocks in his hands.

"These" Alpha explained "are detonators. They will trigger an explosion large enough to destroy the targets.

"Bombs!" Spike was suddenly very excited "We're going to use bombs, that's awesome!"

"These particular devices" Zordon interjected "Are not standard Power Ranges equipment. They are typically used by interstellar terrorists and pirates but our circumstances being what they are, they will serve our needs."

"Alright, what's the plan?" Joseph asked.

Alpha moved back to the main control panel, laid the detonators on the panel, pressed a few buttons and pulled up an image on the monitor that consisted of lots of green lines. He then began to explain the plain to disable the facility.

"First, I'll teleport you in here" he was pointing near the center of the image on the round monitor "it should be right between the two targets. Once you're on the ground, you will split into two teams and plant the detonators simultaneously. After you've armed them, meet back at the teleportation site for extraction."

"Why can't you get us out from when we are? Rachele asked.

"There is a risk" Alpha explained "that Teleporting you out in close proximity to the detonator once it's active could set them off prematurely, which could interrupt the teleportation sequence and cause you to be severely injured."

"Oh…" Rachele's eyes had widened a bit "Thank you."

"How do the explosives work?" Jennifer asked Alpha.

"Right this way" Alpha motioned for Jennifer to join him at the main control panel so he could explain the mechanisms.

"So," Spike asked aloud "do we Morph now or after we get there?"

"As Alpha has explained" Zordon began "it is our hope to send you in and bring you back as quickly as possible. So long as everything goes according to plan, you will be able to avoid a confrontation and there will be no need to morph."

"Oh…" Spike dipped his head a bit, disappointed.

"Remember rangers" Zordon added "While our situation demands that we go on the offensive from time to time, you should avoid using your power except for under the direst of circumstances."

"But Zordon" Joseph asked Zordon directly with a look of concern "We'll need to hide our faces. If we're spotted, they could find out who we are and come after us and our families."

"Alpha and I are aware of the risks and we are prepared, Alpha if you please…" Zordon directed alpha.

"Right Zordon" Alpha said enthusiastically and pressed several keys on the control panel.

There was a brief glow from the back wall of the power chamber and the Rangers turned around to see that the display cases where the Ranger uniforms had been, were now filled with five black suits. Each suit had the same esthetic pattern as the Ranger uniforms, Diamonds across the chest, wrists and ankles. Instead of the solid white color however, the diamonds were represented by a simple outline in the color of the individual Rangers. The helmets were also different, not detailed with dinosaur features but plain, sleek and smaller than their multi-colored counterparts with no mouth piece and a simple slim visor across the eyes in the particular color of the Ranger wearing it. The suits were lightly padded around the wrist, elbow, shins and knees and had more of a rubbery appearance as opposed to the look of spandex on the traditional Ranger suits.

"These…" Zordon began "are your tactical stealth suits, designed just for the kind of mission you are about to embark on."

"I'm quite proud of these," Alpha proclaimed "the visors are armed with night vision, info red, a zoom capability which allows them to function as binoculars and a GPS which allows me to feed points of interests into your helmets." Alpha had now moved to the display case to point at the different features of the new suits. "The suits are also lightly armored which should provide moderate protection should you encounter putties or another of Rita's low-level minions."

"Okay…" Shelton was grinning "that's pretty badass. So, do we wear them under our cloths all the time or… what?"

"If you take a look at your morphers" Alpha explained "you will find two buttons opposite one another, the one on the right is for your primary Ranger form and the one the left will be for the new stealth suits. Just press that button and your suits will appear on you instantly just like your Ranger uniforms."

"Alright then" Joseph began "Jen, do you have the detonator figured out?"

"Yeah" Jennifer responded "I'll be able to show you guys how to set the timer before we split up."

"Okay then, are we ready to do this?" Joseph asked aloud.

All of the Rangers nodded their heads in agreement and reached down for their morphers which were resting on the Rangers waist as belt buckles. They clicked in the button on the left and were suddenly in a shroud of what looked like millions of black specks, the specks were getting closer together and being pulled to the Rangers like magnets until the Stealth suits appeared to reverse dissolve onto the Rangers.

"Awesome!" Spike couldn't hold in his excitement "This is so awesome!"

"It feels so warm and cozy." Rachele felt like she could fall asleep in the suit.

"Aw Yeah" Shelton was admiring himself "I could definitely get used to this."

"How were you able to fit all these visual modes in this one small helmet?" Jennifer was fidgeting with her visor.

"Okay Alpha" Joseph said "I think we're as ready as we'll ever be"

"Very well then," Alpha then handed the detonators to Jennifer and Joseph. "I'll be sending you in relatively between the two targets. Once you're on the ground, split up and make your way to the targets, plant the detonators, then meet back at the teleportation site for extraction. I'll program the location of the targets into your visors, just follow it like a compass."

"Thanks Alpha" Joseph placed his now gloved hand in Alpha's brass shoulder "we'll do our best."

Alpha moved back to the main control panel and began pressing buttons again.

"Remember Rangers" Zordon said "Do your best to stay in cover and complete the mission without a direct confrontation but if the need arises, do whatever is necessary to defend yourselves."

"We understand," Joseph said, looking side to side at his teammates "let's do this."

"Good luck Rangers and May the Power Protect you." Zordon said as Alpha pressed the final key on the control panel and with that, the New Power Rangers Disappeared in a flash of multicolored light.

The Rangers appeared beside an old brick building with wires and pipes protruding from the side of the brick wall and being redirected into the ground. The building was very large, full of high windows and ground level windows to the basement. At a distance of what appeared to be several hundred yards was another larger building that the team could only assume was the hanger bay.

"That must be the hanger bay guys" Joseph was pointing across the runway "one of the markers in my visor is pointing right at it."

"He's right" Jennifer chimed in "The other marker is pointing toward this building and down, I think the forge is underground."

"Oh, fantastic" Shelton moaned "I really felt like climbing stairs tonight."

"Ok guys" Joseph began, ignoring Shelton's complaining "first, Jen is going to show us how to arm the Detonators, then we split up. Spike and Rachele, you guys will take out the Hanger. Me, Jennifer and Shelton will head down to the forge, we'll meet back here once the bombs are in place, deal?"

Everyone nodded in agreement and huddled together so Jennifer could explain how to arm the explosives. Once they were sure they knew how the devices worked, the Rangers split up into their respective sub-groups and headed for their targets. Spike and Rachele headed across the run ways, trying to keep low to the ground, while Shelton, Jennifer and Joseph used one of the ground level windows to enter the basement of the brick building. The three found themselves in what must have been a storage room, there were boxes and barrels lining the walls with rows of shelves running through the middle of the room.

"Let's have a look" Joseph was tearing into one of the boxes.

"What do ya got?" Shelton asked as he peered through an open door on the other side of the room.

"Looks like machine parts" Joseph replied as he rummaged through the box "how about the barrels Jen?"

Jennifer popped the lid off of one of the barrels "Smells like Gasoline but it's green."

"Green Gas?" Shelton remarked as he continued to keep watch through the door "What makes it different from regular gas?"

"Not a question we can answer right now," Joseph responded "come on. The marker is still pointing down, the forge must be further under-ground, is the coast clear Shelton?"

"Yeah, we're good." Shelton was now sticking his whole upper torso out the door to take a full look around.

"Ok, lets' move." Joseph motioned for Jennifer to follow him and Shelton out of the room.

The three Rangers crept out of the room into a dimly light walkway, the markers on their visors were pointing to the left and he rangers followed. They moved slowly down the hall, careful not to make audible footsteps. There was nothing particularly interesting about the walk way, concrete floor and walls with florescent lights hanging from the ceiling.

"Has anyone put any thought into what we do next?" Shelton asked aloud.

"Plant the bomb, set the timer, regroup with the others." Jennifer responded, matter-of-factly.

"No, after that, after this mission." Shelton turned around and faced his team mates "What's the next mission? And the one after that, how do we actually win this, I mean, there are five of us and Rita has a planet full of soldiers, how do we beat that?"

"You're bringing this up now?" Jennifer was looking back and forth between Shelton and Joseph.

"I thought we were all good with this?" Joseph said, trying to hide his uncertainty in how to handle this situation.

"No, no, I'm all in" Shelton started again "I just don't see how we can do much more than annoy her with missions like this."

"Look, I get it. The truth is, I have no idea how we're gona do this" Joseph saw no alternative other than to be honest with Shelton "but I really believe we can do it, we just have to take it one step at a time and figure it out as we go, deal?"

Shelton hesitated for a moment, then raised his head to look Joseph in the visor "Deal, sorry guys. Bad timing, I know."

Joseph pated Shelton on the shoulder "No worries man, now let's blow this place to high hell."

"Can we please?" Jennifer was ready to get a move on.

The three resumed their way down the hall and soon came to a flight of metal grate stairs that went further down into the basement. The marker in their visors appeared to pointing down the stairs so, down they went. As they proceeded down the stairs, the temperature grew steadily warmer and an orange glow started to emanate from the bottom of the stair case. The room they now found themselves in was huge, probably spanning the width of the entire of building and was full of boxes, barrels, crates pallets. The three rangers began investigating the contents of the various containers.

"More of that green Gasoline over here" Jennifer had popped open one of the barrels.

"Crates are full black rocks" Shelton said aloud from a stack of crates a few feet away.

"let me see that" Joseph walked over to join Shelton at the crate he'd pried open. "that's coal, my dad mines this stuff at the quarry along with a bunch of other rocks and minerals.

"They burn coal for fuel, right? So, this is what their using to fuel the forge." Shelton suggested.

"That's my guess too" Joseph replied.

"Guys, look at this!" Jennifer had torn open the plastic wrap that insolated the contents of the pallets.

Joseph and Shelton hurried over to the pallet Jennifer was investigating to see a large device full of buttons, knobs, dials and switches. they also observed several points on the machine that looked to be a port for a hose to be attached.

"What… is… This?" Shelton asked, circling the device.

"I think it's… an engine" Jennifer replied, studying the various controls. "Or part of an engine, at least."

"What makes you think that?" Joseph asked her.

"Look at these dials, they all have to do with fuel regulation and proportions." Jennifer explained as she pointed to the dials "I think this machine regulates the flow of fuel with-in the engine of the starships Rita is building."

"Great, now that we've worked that out, we can still blow them up along with the rest of this place." Shelton said, circling back around the machine.

"This might come in handy later Jen, Good work" Joseph said, then turned back to Shelton and the machine "but for now, Shelton is right. All of this stuff is going up in flames"

"I know, you're right" Jennifer agreed "we should head that way, the glow is brighter down there, that's where we'll find the primary forge." She was pointing to the far end of the basement.

"Aright, lead the way" Joseph extended his arm to invite Jennifer to take the lead.

Jennifer lead her team mates across the basement, pass more boxes, barrels and crates. the further they walked, the warmer… The hotter it got. Before long, an assortment of pipes and nozzles came into view, running along the ceiling. There was steam spewing out of several week points in the pipes and condensation dripping from the nozzles. The various containers were becoming more frequent and a conveyor belt had come into view, the belt was inactive, there didn't appear to be any sign of activity.

"This belt probably brings raw materials to the forge to be processed" Jennifer pointed out "the workers load the coal onto the belt to be brought to the forge and burned as fuel."

"Ok, question." Shelton chimed in "Why haven't we seen anyone or anything?"

"What do you mean?" Jennifer asked, puzzled.

"I mean, where is every one?" Shelton replied, stopping in his tracks "We've seen no workers, no putties, this place doesn't even look like it's running."

"Shelton has a point" Joseph began "this place should be crawling with putties and a work force, which begs another question…"

"What?" Shelton and Jennifer asked in unison.

"If we blow this place, aren't innocent people going to get caught in the blast?" Joseph asked, with concern in his voice.

Shelton and Jennifer didn't answer, they hadn't considered this. The three stood in silence for a moment, none of them wanting to be the first to speak. Finally, Alpha 5's voice from inside their helmets broke the silence.

"Rangers, can you hear me?" Alpha asked "there is a small button just behind your visor on the left, press and hold it to respond and speak to me."

"Alpha, can you hear me" Joseph asked, now pressing the button alpha had described to them.

"Yes, I read you Joseph. How is the mission progressing?" Alpha asked.

"Shelton, Jennifer and I are near the forge. Spike and Rachele should be nearing the Hanger if they haven't already gotten there." Joseph responded

"Excellent!" Alpha said with excitement "Remember once the timer is set, return to the teleportation sight for extraction."

"Hold on Alpha" Joseph stopped him "There could be a problem."

"What is it Rangers?" Alpha asked with confusion.

"The workers here" Shelton answered in Josephs place "we haven't seen them or any putties but they have to be here somewhere. If we blow this place up, isn't someone going to get hurt?"

"One moment Rangers" Alpha was now pressing buttons and turning knobs "I'll scan for human life signs in the facilities."

There was a brief pause during which all three Rangers considered to themselves what the next move should be. If there was no one in the area, they could proceed as planned and be done with the place but if there was even a single person nearby, would they have to find that person and get them out first or would they abandon the mission all together and return to the power chamber? These and other questions were racing through the Rangers minds when alpha finally responded back to them.

"We're in luck Rangers" Alpha said, gleefully "the entire workforce appears to be concentrated in another building on the grounds, outside of the blast radius of the detonators."

"That explains where the putties are too" Joseph said aloud "they're probably guarding the workers."

"What are they doing there? And how long do you think we have?" Jennifer aske Alpha.

"I can't say for certain, but my guess is they are being subjected to more of Rita's propaganda." Alpha answered "As for how long they will remain there, there is really no way for me to know."

"That means we need to get a move on," Joseph declared. "we'll be back in touch shortly Alpha, come on guys, let move."

The three Rangers now took off in a dead sprint further into the basement, following the pipes on the ceiling. It didn't take long before they found what they had been looking for and he team stood before a gigantic furnace.

"Ok, lets plant the bomb and bounce" Shelton said, breathing heavily.

"Wait!" Jennifer stopped him "We need to put it in just the right place" and she began fiddling with the visual setting on her visor.

"What are you fooling with, girl?" Shelton asked, tapping his foot "You heard Alpha, we don't have all night."

"I'm using the infrared to find the hottest spot on the furnace" Jennifer explained "hotter means more fuel concentrated in that area, more fuel means bigger explosion."

"Oh…" Shelton felt like a dunce "Makes sense I guess."

"Over there," Jennifer pointed "where the conveyor empties into the forge."

The team hustled to the conveyor and swept away some debris to give Jennifer a solid place to plant the explosive, she placed the device underneath the conveyor belt and set the timer.

"Ten minutes guys?" Jennifer asked as she set the timer.

"Yeah" Joseph replied "that should be plenty of time to get out and put some distance between us and this building"

"ten minutes…" Shelton sounded a tad nervous "isn't that cutting it a bit close?"

"It's plenty of time," Joseph explained "we don't have to sneak out, there aren't any guards. We just hurry out the door."

"Good point, good point." Shelton conceded "Could have set it for fifteen for good measure but it's cool."

"All set," Jennifer was standing up from where she placed the detonator "It's counting down, let's get out of here."

The three wasted no time in running full speed back to the stare case they had descended earlier, they climbed the stairs back to the baron hallway which lead them back to the storage room. They entered the room and found the window they'd climbed in through, then hoisted each other up back through the window.

"Guys, Guys can you hear me?" Spikes whispered voice was now coming in through their helmets.

"Spike, it's Joseph, I can here you." Joseph replied as Jennifer helped Shelton by pulling him out of the window."

"Hey, um… You guys busy?" Spike asked, nervously.

"We just planted our explosive and we're on our way to meet you guys." Joseph responded back "Why? Everything ok?"

"Well… We've got our bomb planted but…" Spike trailed off.

"But what?" Jennifer asked, having successfully pulled Shelton through the window.

"We're cut off from our exit and our bomb is going to blow in fourteen minutes!" Rachele was now responding.

"Oh crap…" Shelton said, standing up from the window.

"We're on our way, hang tight guys!" with that, Joseph and the others took off a dead sprint across the run way, desperately trying to reach their friends in time.

"Alpha, it's Jennifer. Can you her me" Jennifer radioed out.

"I hear you Rangers, and I've been monitoring" Alpha responded.

"Can you teleport the others out or us in?" Joseph asked, winded.

"I'm afraid not, it's too close to the detonator, the electro charge of the teleportation could set off the explosion prematurely."

"Ok, I got you" Joseph replied, out of ideas.

"Alpha, can you feed Spike and Rachele's position into our visors?" Jennifer asked, thinking quickly.

"An excellent idea!" Alpha replied with enthusiasm "Sending you the corrodents now."

Two more markers appeared in the Ranger's visors, indicating Spike and Rachele's position.

"We've got them, Thanks Alpha." Joseph said, as the three continued to sprint.

"Ok, next mission I'm pairing up with Spike," Shelton said, breathlessly "so I can keep an eye on his ass."

Spike and Rachele were on board one of the ships near the center of the hanger bay, hiding in a maintenance shaft in the engine section of the ship, in exactly the spot where they had planted the explosive. They were hiding from several patrols of putties that had entered the hanger just as the two were on their way out, having already planted the bomb, forcing them to retreat back into the ship. The two Rangers thought that perhaps they could fight their way out and would have given it a shot had it not been for the sheer number of putties… And the monster.

"What the Hell is that?" Spike asked in a whispered, high pitched voice.

"I have no idea…" Rachele replied, also whispering.

"It looks like a wood pecker" Spike observed.

To Be Continued…


	5. It's Morphin Time

**Rangers: 25 R.R.**

Episode 5: It's Morphin Time

"Why are there so many of them?" Rachele asked, still whispering. "Do you think we tripped a silent alarm or something?"

"No!" Spike said quickly, darting his eyes back and forth "I mean, no."

"Spike, Rachele, can you hear me?" Joseph's voice was coming through their helmets.

"Yeah, we hear you." Rachele responded "Where are you?"

"We're just outside the hanger," Joseph replied "how much time is left on your bomb?"

"Less than nine minutes" Spike responded in a panicked whispered voice. "and there's a Monster in here…"

"What?" Shelton asked" Did he say monster? Like, an actual monster?"

"Worry about that later." Joseph directed "Jennifer, time?"

"3, 2, 1…" Jennifer counted down.

BOOOOOM! There, was an enormous explosion across the runway, completely consuming the brick building Joseph, Shelton and Jennifer had planted their Detonator. Inside, the monster and putties immediately knew something had happened and emptied out of the ship, into the hanger and out onto the runway, making a B-line for the building in flames. Joseph and the others went unnoticed, standing firmly against the building on either side of the door as the putties and bird like monster ran out, then quickly ran inside to find their friends. They didn't have to go far, Rachele and Spike met them almost just inside the door.

"You guys ok?" Joseph asked his team mates.

"Yeah, we're fine." Rachele replied.

"The giant bird…?" Shelton began.

"OOH, you saw it?" Spike asked, excitedly "Where did that thing even come from?"

"Might I suggest we talk about this later?" Jennifer cut in "Some place that isn't about to explode?"

"She's right," Rachele declared "we've got five minutes at best."

"Alright let's get…" Joseph was cut off by the appearance of another putty patrol.

"Oh, come on, what is this? Left overs?" Shelton complained, looking around at the putties that now surrounded them."

"Guys, their blocking the way out!" Spike pointed out, in a high-pitched voice.

"Stay calm guys, we knew this would happen eventually." Joseph attempted to rally his Ranger team "We've beaten these things before, we'll do again. Remember how easy they crumbled back in town?"

"He's right," Rachele chimed in "we want out, we'll have to fight our way out."

Every one nodded in agreement and braced themselves for their first fight as Power Rangers.

"LET DO THIS!" Joseph shouted, and the team charged the putties that stood between them and the way out.

The rangers were out-numbered 2:1 and took several hits from their opponent's but the material of their stealth suits seemed to absorb much of the impact from the putties blows. This allowed the ranger to focus more on throwing more of their own punches rather than worry about the punches they were taking. None of the rangers were trained fighters, not even spike, with his love of the arena, so each ranger simply brawled as though this were a street fight, throwing kicks and punches at anything they could hit. The putties proved to be even more frail than the Rangers realized, after taking enough hits, they simply crumbled where they stood. Unable to do any damage to the rangers and having no real resilience of their own, the Putties were soon dust on the floor and the Ranger stood, having just won their first fight against the Forces of Rita Repulsa.

"Oh my God!" Spike was about to lose all composure "We just did that… THAT WAS AWSOME!"

"GUYS, LESS THAN A MINUTE!" Rachele yelled to the others and the team bolted for the door.

"The exited the hanger bay and were suddenly stopped in their tracks by the wood pecker monster they had seen earlier.

"So…" the Monster spoke in a high-pitched voice that sounded appropriate for a bird. "What do we have here?"

"That thing talks?" Shelton asked aloud.

"I do more than talk" the monster spoke back to him "I'm called "The Peckster" and it's been a long time since I've had any real fun."

"Oh, no fun to be had here," Spike chuckled, nervously "we're just a bunch of boring people in black rubber suits."

"Boring huh?" Peckster responded "I can help with that" The monster opened his mouth wide and small, sharp needles came flying out, striking the ground around the rangers and causing small combustions. The rangers were forced back inside the hanger.

"GUYS, THIS IS NOT WHERE WE WANT TO BE!" Rachele reminded them, with fear in her voice.

Joseph looked around the hanger, hoping an answer would present itself. He reached down on his waist and suddenly remembered that they hadn't morphed yet.

"Guys, grab your morphers!" he directed

"Zordon said we should only morph in an emergency..." Spike pointed out nervously.

"This isn't an emergency?" Shelton asked spike directly with shock in his voice.

"Just don't want to get fired on my first day is all" Spiked mumbled as he reached for his morpher.

"You did fix the spandex, right?" Shelton asked Jennifer.

"NOT THE TIME SHELTON!" Rachele yelled at him, pointing at her wrist.

"Ok guys, here it goes…" Joseph said as he and his fellow Rangers held their morphers up into the air "IT'S MORPHIN TIME!"

The hanger was engulfed in flames, Peckster watched as fire roared into the sky and debris fell back down to earth. There was no sign, as of yet, that the Rangers managed to escaped before the explosion. Peckster turned around to behold the burning building across the runway, which had exploded just moments before the hanger and was being investigated by several groups of putties.

"Wow, that wasn't half as much fun as I hoped it would be." Peckster complained to himself. "Well, whoever they were, there's probably nothing left… He hu ha HA HA HAAAA!"

Peckster was about to walk away, seeing no reason to linger with this small band of terrorists having already been incinerated. Just has he turned to leave However, he was suddenly struck by an energy blast in his right shoulder. The blast brought Peckster to one knee, mostly due to the sheer surprise he felt upon being struck.

"Hey, where did that come from?" Peckster yelled out loud "Who's the wise guy?"

Peckster darted his head back and forth, trying to spot the person responsible for blasting him. Suddenly, something caught his eye near the fire where the hanger once stood. As he looked closer, he was able to make out five emerging silhouettes, with the figure in the center appearing to be holding hand gun of some kind.

"What?" Peckster was in disbelief "that's not possible!"

The five figures emerged from the roaring fire to reveal not the black suited individuals that had retreated back into the hanger, but five multi-colored suits with slightly larger and more detailed helmets. These new suits were drastically different from what pecker had seen earlier, each wore matching boots and gloves with colored diamonds across the wrists and ankles. The legs resemble militaristic cargo trousers that were solid colored and tucked into the boots and bore a white belt at the waist with a large belt buckle at the center. The upper torso appeared to be form fitting and matched the color of the trousers, each with a white diamond pattern across the chest and a gold emblem showcasing some sort of animal. What individualized each of these new suites (apart from their distinct colors) was the unique over coat each wore. On the far right was the one in black, who wore a long-sleeved open trench coat that almost reached the ground. On the far left was pink, also in a trench coat but looser and only coming down to just behind the knees. Left of center was yellow, wearing what looked like a yellow jean jacket that stopped at the waist. Right of center was blue, also wearing a long coat but sleeveless, exposing the blue form fitting sleeves of the inner torso top and stopping behind the calves of their legs. Finally, standing in center and still holding the blaster that struck Peckster, was Red, sporting what resembled a red leather Jacket with a biker like collar.

"Who…?" Peckster was struggling to pick a question "What are you?"

"We" Joseph Declared for the first time "are The Power Rangers."

There was another large explosion from with-in the burning hanger bay behind the Rangers, probably another ship that hadn't blown yet. The Rangers didn't flinch at this explosion but rather remained motionless and continued to stared Peckster down.

"I DON'T CARE WHO YOU ARE" Peckster yelled as he stood up "I'm going to peck you full of holes!" and he opened his mouth wide again fired the small needle like spikes.

Several spikes struck the ground around the rangers as before, causing small combustions around them but this time, several of them also struck the Rangers, causing them to be thrust to the ground from the force.

"Uh, that didn't feel good" Spike said, clutching his abdomen.

"No" Shelton agreed "No it didn't."

"The pain is already going away though" Rachele observed.

"That's the suit doing its job" Jennifer explained. "it protects us from damage and speeds up our recovery after we've been hit."

"Let's not take that as a free pass to just take hits guys" Joseph directed "Let's try keeping our distance first, Blasters Ready!"

The other four rangers drew their blaster pistols and took aim. The weapons were all red with a white barrel and red tipped muzzle. They had what looked like the head of a small dinosaur and its teeth at the top of the slide and another set of three long teeth running along the side the barrel about a quarter of its length. The bottom of the handle and the back of the slide had three jagged teeth pointing out and down. The teeth were chrome.

"Fire!" Joseph commanded and all the Rangers pulled their triggers.

Peckster was blasted multiple times by multicolored beams forcing him to take several steps back. The Rangers ceased fire to inspect the damage they had done. Peckster was laughing…

"Ha ha haaa" Peckster cackled "is that the best you can do Power Rangers?"

"Are you kidding me?" Shelton said out loud "we just blasted him with freaking lasers and he laughs at us…?"

"Ok, distance isn't going to do it" Joseph said, thinking quickly "switch to saber mode, we'll try getting in close."

The rangers Pulled the slides of their pistols out and folded the handles up so that the teeth on both ends joined together and locked into place. Then a blade popped out from under the barrel and protruded from the muzzle about six inches. Each Ranger was now armed with a dagger like weapon.

"Why don't I come to you!?" Peckster open his large blue wings took flight, charging the Rangers at Mach speed and striking them with his talons in the blink of an eye, knocking them down once again.

"He actually fly's!?" Spike said with shock. "I though those wings were just for show."

"They showed you Power puce" Pekster responded, mockingly.

"Back on your feet guys," Joseph called out "we'll charge him together, GO!"

"The Rangers charged Peckster all at once with their sabers out, attacking him in pairs. Joseph reached Peckster first, swinging and slashing with his saber but peckster blocked all Joseph's attacks with his talons and then struck Joseph hard in the torso, sending him rolling on the ground. Jennifer and Shelton were next, trying to confuse Peckster by attacking from two sides but he spread his wings and spun his body in place, sending the two rangers hurling to the ground in different directions. Finally, Spike and Rachele leapt into the air together with their sabers reared back, ready to strike but Peckster reached up to grab both of them and slung them hard to the ground.

"Come on Power punks!" Peckster mocked them "Can't you do any better than that?" and he took off into the air again then touched back down some distance from the Rangers.

"You haven't beaten us yet ya big wood pecker!" Joseph yelled at Peckster as the five Rangers re-grouped.

"Oh no?" Peckster began as he spread his wigs once again "Then let's see you hold up against this…"

Peckster began flapping his wings hard and fast, he wasn't taking off for flight, rather he was creating a powerful gust of wind that began to blow the Rangers backward uncontrollably. They were nearly blown back into the roaring fire that was once the hanger bay but the strength of the wind faded as the Rangers were blown farther from peckster. The Rangers Regained their footing and tried to come up with a new strategy.

"What do we do?" Shelton asked "he either claws us to pieces or blows us away."

"He hasn't seen our primary weapons yet," Jennifer suggested "let's break them out."

"What good will that do?" Rachele asked "We'd still need to get in close and that hasn't worked out so well."

"Why don't we try both at the same time? Joseph suggested "long distance and close combat together."

"What?" Shelton asked, confused.

"Trust me guys," Joseph reassured "everyone follows my lead, sabers out. Spike, you hang back, when you see the opening, take the shot, got it?"

"Got ya" spike replied, placing his hand over his morpher.

"Ok guys, GO!"

Joseph lead the other three rangers in a charge directly at Peckster, their saber brought to bear.

"Come and get me Powerless Rangers." Peckster continued to mock them.

Just as the ranger were within striking distance, they leapt into the air one after the other and sailed clear over Peckster's head, landing directly behind him. Peckster only saw the black ranger, still in front of him and at a distance and aiming what looked like a large black rifle at him.

"Hey Pecker Head!" Spike yelled and he pulled the trigger, Blasting Peckster backwards and knocking him on the ground.

"Good shot Spike!" Joseph yelled to his fellow Ranger "Weapons out guys, time to clip this bird brain's wings"

All the Rangers drew their weapons in flashes of multi colored light, Shelton drew a pair of twin Daggers with yellow handles. Rachel, a bow and Arrow, the bow was mostly white with pink detailing on either side of the grip. Jennifer drew a long double-bladed lance; the blades were in trident formation on either side of the long, blue staff. Spike was already holding his Power Axe, the handle was 18 inches long and had a rifle muzzle at the end, black with evenly space yellow rings. The base of axe blade was black with a yellow stripe down the middle and the axe blade was yellow along the edge. The weapon doubled as a Blaster Rifle. Joseph drew his Long sword; the handle was black with a red tipped end and the hilt was red with a Gold coin imbedded in the middle. The coin had the image of a Tyrannosaurus pressed in it. The blade of the sword was twenty-seven inches long and razor sharp. The Rangers attacked Peckster with full force, Jennifer swung mercilessly with her Double ended lance, then dodging to the side as Shelton leapt in with his twin daggers, slashing at peckster's Knees and elbows. He also dodged to one side so Spike and Rachele could take turns blasting Peckster their Power axe and Bow & arrow. Finally, Joseph sprinted toward Peckster at full speed, his Power sword in hand and slashed Peckster devastatingly across the torso, sending him hurling backwards and rolling to the ground.

"Is that..." Peckster began, breathing heavily "the best you've got?"

"Not quite Bird brain." Joseph declared, holding up his sword "Rangers, Bring them together!"

Spike took center, holding out his axe in blaster position followed by Rachele, who placed her bow on top of his axe, creating the look of a crossbow. Next, Shelton stepped up, placing his daggers on either side of the bow with the handles facing forward. Then, Jennifer detached her lance at the center and placed both ends on either side of the bow, also with handles facing forward. Finally, Joseph stepped forward and placed his sword in the center of this new weapon with the blade facing forward.

"You wanted the best we've got…" Joseph called out to peckster "Here it is!"

Joseph took the weapon from Spike and stood center as his fellow Rangers took positions at his sides. He raised the newly completed Power Blaster and took aim.

"Oh, come," Peckster began to beg "Give me a pecking chance."

"You had one…" Joseph replied "You blew it."

Joseph Pulled the trigger and blasted Peckster with the full force of the Blaster which was greater than the sum of its parts. Six solid beams of Red, Black, Blue, Pink and Yellow light struck Peckster with Devistating force. Peckster Yelled out in pain upon the blast's impact and then he simply fell to the ground, exploding on the spot. The force of the explosion would lead one to believe that he drank gasoline before a fight.

"Oh my god…" Rachele took a few steps forward "We did it, we actually did it"

"That was the coolest thing anyone has ever done!" Spike couldn't contain his excitement.

"I wonder why he exploded like that" Jennifer pondered "I honestly wasn't expecting that."

"That's one down" Shelton chimed in "a whole lot more to go."

"We'll do it Shelton" Joseph reassured his team mate "we're going to beat them."

Shelton nodded his helmet, then turned to look at the destruction that the rangers had reeked that night. "It's gona get worse before it gets bette.r" He muttered to himself.

"Congratulations Rangers, on a job superbly well done" Zordon complemented the Rangers. "you not only succeeded in completing your mission but also managed to defeat one of Rita's most dangerous Minions in a battle you had no preparation for. I could not be more pleased with the job you have done today."

"Thank you Zordon," Joseph replied "for a while, we were worried."

"You were worried," Alpha 5 asked, surprised "I'm surprised I didn't blow a circuit, I was so nervous."

"Zordon, what was that thing?" Rachele sked.

"Peckster" Zordon explained "was one of many creatures at Rita's command. They are created by Finster in his laboratory and always come with an assortment of weapons and powers."

"How many more are there?" Spike asked "Do they all look like wood Peckers?"

"I'm afraid Finster can create and endless supply of Monsters and putties, each unique from the other, this war will not be won by defeating our enemies one by one."

"Then, how do we win?" Shelton asked Zordon directly.

"For now, we will continue to undermine her efforts and seize every opportunity we can" Zordon explained "but in the end, the only way to achieve true victory, will be to defeat Rita and her minions themselves."

"How do we do that?" Joseph asked.

"Do not burden yourselves with that now Rangers," Zordon tried to settle the team "for now, celebrate the moment and return to your homes, tomorrow the battle begins again."

"Alpha," Jenifer turned to the friendly robot "How did we know what we were doing out there? Our weapons, how to use them, how to fight like that… How did we do it?"

"It's all in your morphers" Alpha answered "when you morph, all the knowledge of your powers in instilled into you, as well as amplifying your natural strength, speed, stamina and fighting ability."

"That's incredible" Jennifer was getting excited again "how does it work?"

"Hey Jen," Shelton interrupted her excitement "nice job on the suits."

"Yeah?" Jennifer smiled "You really liked them?"

"Are you kidding?" Spike asked in his high pitched, enthusiastic voice "I never thought I could so cool!"

All the rangers nodded in agreement as they formed a circle at the center of the Power chamber.

"So, this is who we are now." Joseph addressed his team "Students by day, super heroes by night."

"Not just Super heroes…" Shelton chimed in "Power Rangers."

Shelton held out his fist in the center of the circle, everyone looked around at one another, unsure of what to make of Shelton's gesture. Then, Rachele reached out her hand and placed it on top of Shelton's fist. Spike followed suit, placing his hand on Rachele's. He was followed by Jennifer, placing her hand on his. Joseph stood in awe of his friends, feeling touched by the comradery now being shown buy his friends.

"Come on leader man, you gona get in here or what?" Shelton asked his friend.

Joseph smiled, shaking his head as he reached out and placing his hand on the hands of his fellow Rangers hands.

"On three guys?" He asked his friends.

They all nodded.

"Ok…" Joseph began… "One, two…"

The alarm suddenly went off and everyone was looking around, confused.

"Alpha, what's going on?" Joseph asked with urgency.

"Rita has sent another of her monsters into a highly populated area and it's harassing the citizens," Alpha replied in a panic "my guess is she's actively trying to find he ones responsible for the destruction of her war ship facility."

"Looks like we pissed her off" Shelton snickered.

"Ok guys, looks like the night isn't quit over yet." Joseph motioned to his team mates.

"Are you sure you're up for another battle Rangers?" Zordon asked with concern.

"We'll be ok Zordon" Joseph reassured him "Besides, we can't let that thing hurt anyone."

"Very well then" Zordon conceded "Good luck Rangers and may the Power protect you."

"Let's do it Guys" Joseph said as he reached for his morpher "IT'S MORPHIN TIME!"


End file.
